The updates represent historically low net increases in payment rates, which CMS attributes to the slowing rate of inflation in the economy.
According to the CMS proposal, acute care hospital payment rates will be increased by 2.1 percent for inflation less an adjustment of 1.9 percentage points to remove the effect of increases in aggregate payments due to recent changes in hospital coding practices that lead to an increase in aggregate payments without corresponding growth in actual patient severity. Long-term care hospital rates will increase by 2.4 percent for inflation less an adjustment of 1.8 percentage points to account for the same changes in coding practices, under the proposed payment rates.
The proposed changes would apply to approximately 3,500 acute care hospitals paid under the Inpatient Prospective Payment System and 400 long-term care hospitals paid under the Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System, beginning with discharges occurring on or after Oct. 1, 2009.
Read the proposed 2010 Medicare payment rates for hospital inpatient services (pdf).
