The Medicare post-acute care payment reform initiative: impact and opportunity for case management.

Prof Case Manag 13(1):37-42 (2008) PMID 18162970

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 mandated that a standardized patient assessment occurs for all Medicare recipients at hospital discharge (regardless of whether they are transferred to a post-acute care [PAC] setting) and during stays in PAC settings to support PAC payment reform. The purpose of this article is to describe the current progress on this initiative and the impact and opportunities it presents for case managers.