On August 13, 2019, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals (the D.C. Circuit) issued an opinion in Children’s Hospital Association of Texas v. Azar (No. 18-5135), allowing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to include payments from third parties, including Medicare and private insurers, in calculations of Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payment caps. The D.C. Circuit had previously ruled against HHS’ implementation of its 2017 rule, which included third-party payments in the calculation of the hospital-specific caps on allowable DSH payments.
Continue Reading D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Allows HHS Rule that Includes Payments Received from Third Parties in DSH Payment Cap Calculation
Disproportionate Share Hospital
Supreme Court Rejects HHS Proposal that Could Have Significantly Lowered Certain Medicare DSH Payments to Hospitals
By Conor Duffy on
In a 7-1 decision released June 3, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated a proposal of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that would have had the effect of significantly reducing Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payments to thousands of hospitals for care furnished to low income patients in 2012.
In Azar v. Allina Health Services, Et Al., the Supreme Court held that HHS needed to comply with statutory notice and comment rulemaking procedures under the Social Security Act (Act) when making interpretive changes, because HHS sought to establish or change substantive legal standards. As a result, HHS was required to publish its proposal to change the DSH payment calculations for 2012 for notice and comment, and its unilateral determination regarding the calculation of those payments was invalid.
Continue Reading Supreme Court Rejects HHS Proposal that Could Have Significantly Lowered Certain Medicare DSH Payments to Hospitals