WASHINGTON – A report issued last month by the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services is calling on the agency to require that physician-owned specialty hospitals be able to handle medical emergencies.
The recommendations came after a review of 109 hospitals last year by the OIG. The study found that fewer than one-third of all physician-owned specialty hospitals have physicians on site at all times, and two-thirds include calling “911” as part of their emergency response procedures.
The OIG report calls on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to stiffen emergency care requirements for specialty hospitals.
“We recommend that CMS ensure that hospitals have the capabilities to provide for the appraisal and initial treatment of emergencies and that they are not relying on ‘911’ as a substitute for their own ability to provide these services,” the report concluded.
The report highlights emergency care shortcomings at specialty hospitals and, if acted on by CMS or Congress, could increase the financial requirements such facilities face to continue operations.
The report was hailed by Sens. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.), who requested a review by the Inspector General in March 2006. They are ranking members of the Senate Committee on Finance, which is responsible for Medicare legislation and oversight.
Baucus noted that hospitals participating in the Medicare program are required to provide round-the-clock clinical staffing and implementation of written procedures.
“It’s unbelievable that a facility that calls itself a hospital would, at times, not even have a doctor on call or a nurse on duty,” he said. “It is unacceptable that these facilities are not designed or equipped to handle emergencies. Medicare dollars for hospitalizations should not be spent on facilities that most people wouldn’t even call a hospital.”
Physician-owned specialty hospitals primarily perform cardiac, orthopedic or surgical procedures and are partially or wholly owned by physician investors.