In advance of IPPS final rule, AHA urges CMS not to cut DSH payments

The AHA July 25 urged the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to maintain the uninsured rate at 8.7% under the inpatient prospective payment system final rule for fiscal year 2025, which would help provide stability for DSH facilities. In comments to CMS, the AHA expressed concerns about the agency's lack of transparency regarding how it and the Office of the Actuary calculate DSH payments.

"The agency continues to withhold relevant information from the public, thereby depriving the AHA and others of the ability to comment on the basis for the agency's decision," AHA wrote. "Without additional information regarding the OACT analysis, stakeholders can neither validate nor evaluate the complex calculations CMS has made in estimating the percent of uninsured and other factors used to determine DSH payments."