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DPH: Hospital emergency no impact on Medicare
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Posted on Jul 28 2011
The emergency declaration for the Commonwealth Health Center has no adverse impact on its Medicare certification because majority of the deficiencies earlier cited by the agency have been corrected and are being corrected, according to a senior public health official.
Esther Muña, acting deputy secretary for hospital administration, is confident that Medicare will treat the emergency declaration as an additional way to correct and address other concerns at the hospital. She said the declaration shows the hospital’s commitment to resolve issues surrounding services at the facility.
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services did an investigation survey of the hospital in March 2010, during which several deficiencies were found. A few months later, a corrective action plan submitted by the hospital was accepted by Medicare as sufficient. A resurvey done by Medicare representatives also resulted in the lifting of the jeopardy status in some areas of the hospital. CHC was also cleared by Medicare last year of alleged discrimination.
Muña pointed out that the emergency declaration is because of budget constraints.
