Abstract
Postacute care costs have doubled over the past decade and now account for 17% of Medicare fee-for-service spending. Costs are forecast to continue to rise, paradoxically in large part in response to federal policies and efforts to control health care costs. This commentary introduces a potential solution to this situation and is divided into 4 parts. The first provides a brief review of the policies fostering this growth. The second assesses how the responses of health care providers, while inherently rational, are destructive to the system. The third identifies hospital-acquired disability as a modifiable driver in this scenario, and the fourth discusses how an improvement in detection and a redistribution of hospital-based rehabilitation services may be able to reverse this unsustainable growth.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1997-1999 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation |
Volume | 95 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs |
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State | Published - Nov 1 2014 |
Keywords
- Function
- Healthcare utilization
- Policy
- Post acute care
- Rehabilitation
- Reimbursement
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation
- Rehabilitation