Feature Story

April 2, 2009

Rehospitalizations Among Patients in the Medicare Fee-for-Service Program

From The Commonwealth Fund:

A study of Medicare fee-for-service claims data for nearly 12 million Medicare beneficiaries discharged from a hospital in 2003 and 2004 found that one of five patients was readmitted within 30 days, and half of nonsurgical patients were rehospitalized without having seen an outpatient doctor in follow-up.

The estimated cost of unplanned hospital readmissions in 2004 accounted for $17.4 billion of the $102.6 billion total hospital payments made by Medicare that same year.

To address the problem, the researchers recommend intervention at the time of discharge, reliable and prompt follow-up care by primary care physicians, and aggressive management of chronic illnesses.

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