The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program - Time for a Reboot

N Engl J Med. 2019 Jun 13;380(24):2289-2291. doi: 10.1056/NEJMp1901225. Epub 2019 May 15.

Abstract

The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP) was established by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2010 with a goal of reducing preventable hospitalizations by imposing financial penalties on hospitals with higher-than-expected 30-day readmission rates. After the program was created, readmission rates appeared to decrease nationwide for patients hospitalized with heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, and pneumonia, the three conditions it originally targeted.

MeSH terms

  • Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S.
  • Health Policy*
  • Heart Failure / mortality
  • Humans
  • Patient Readmission* / standards
  • Patient Readmission* / statistics & numerical data
  • United States