Top

Lowering readmission rates does not harm patient safety

July 20, 2017

Category:

As hospitals continue to lower readmission rates and satisfy new value-based incentives, mortality rates have also dropped, signaling improvement in care quality, a new study found. Hospitals have successfully reduced readmission rates over the past several years, as new payment incentives penalize providers that have patients return within 30 days after they are discharged.

But some worry that may lead to hospitals sending patients who should be admitted home from the emergency department or providers becoming distracted from other quality improvement efforts.

Read More on Modern Healthcare