Twenty-three Oregon hospitals are among the more than 2,500 hospitals nationwide financially penalized this week by the federal government for having excessive rates of readmissions of recent elderly patients.
Also, five Oregon hospitals are among hundreds nationwide being financially penalized by the federal government for having high numbers of infections and injuries among elderly patients, according to the data analyzed by the nonprofit Kaiser Health News.
Under programs set up by the Affordable Care Act, the federal government cuts Medicare payments to hospitals that have high rates of readmissions and those with the highest numbers of infections and patient injuries.
For the readmission penalties, Medicare cuts up to three percent for each patient, although the average is generally much lower. The patient safety penalties cost hospitals one percent of Medicare payments over the federal fiscal year, which runs October through September.
For the just-started federal fiscal year, 2020, the following Oregon hospitals were levied the highest penalties for Medicare readmissions:
- Asante Ashland Community Hospital, 2.4 percent penalty this fiscal year, down from 2.75 percent penalty last fiscal year.
- Saint Alphonsus Medical Center, Ontario, 1.89 percent penalty this fiscal year, up from 1.74 percent last year.
- Providence Medford Medical Center, 1.72 percent penalty, up from 0.51 percent.
- Providence Milwaukie Medical Center, 1.68 percent, up from 1.43 percent.
- Adventist Health Portland, 0.52 percent, up from 0.5 percent.
Also, the following five hospitals had one percent patient safety penalties for the just-ended fiscal year:
- Asante Ashland Community Hospital
- Oregon Health & Science University, Portland
- Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center
- Providence Newberg Medical Center
- Santiam Hospital, Stayton
For the complete database of hospitals in Oregon and nationwide, visit: https://khn.org/news/hospital-penalties/readmissions/
