The penalties to the hospitals for readmissions started earlier. Those penalties have been successful in reducing readmissions.
Those penalties are the latest major absurdity imposed on healthcare by the WeeWees (Washington Wizards). They became active just a few months ago, and no one knows if they are effective. I know a thing or two about them, since until recently I sat on a hospital committee tasked with keeping the hospital from going bankrupt over this issue.
All of us heard stories about people who were "in and out" of hospitals during the last years / months of their lives. Those stories are true. With certain medical conditions rates of readmissions are huge - like, Congestive Heart Failures of different types, exacerbations a of Emphysema, etc. I knew very well a young man with brittle Diabetes and renal failure and Cardiomyopathy. There were periods when he used to be admitted to the ICU at least weekly - sometimes, with blood sugar of 24, other times, with 1400; several admissions were for other reasons, like life threatening serum Potassium levels and heart problems.
This man (Victor) recently died, of a bleed into the brain (result of a fall and head injury) -- otherwise, he would be the King of Unpaid Readmissions. He was 26.
That's an extreme case, and there are many unnecessary admission, -- but most of frequent readmissions are, in fact, absolutely justified. They will be taking place anyway, even for free - because hospitals have no other choice. All over the country there are a variety of home care and house call services coming to life - many supported by hospitals - with the express mandate to help avoid readmissions within one month. After 31 days - that's fine, they are welcome to come back to the hospital. Why 31? Because that's what the bureaucrats agreed - and voted - upon.
Hospitals are liable for any patient who enters their ER. ERs are not in the business of being death panels, deciding who will live - and who will die (based on the history of previous recent admissions). Sick patients will not be denied admission. Someone, one way or another, will pay for them.
The way these new rules are designed and implemented is yet another good argument against socialistic solutions. |
