The Acute Care Hospital at Home model (ACHAH) provides traditional hospital inpatient acute-level services at home.  Prior to the pandemic a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid pilot study yielded positive results with respect to hospital readmission rates and follow-up emergency department visits. The ACHAH model appears to be a feasible alternative to traditional inpatient acute care that can improve quality of care and patient satisfaction. What was previously a trickle of interest turned into a wave of necessity as the pandemic overwhelmed hospitals and the health care system in 2020. In response to the pandemic, CMS began to provide hospital with broad regulatory flexibility to implement the ACHAH model.

CMS has issued a new rule clarifying that its daily Covid-19 reporting via the HHS Teletracking portal is mandatory as a condition of participation in the Medicare program. 42 C.F.R. § 482.42. HHS’s FAQ detailing the hospital reporting requirements can be found here – https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/covid-19-faqs-hospitals-hospital-laboratory-acute-care-facility-data-reporting.pdf.  Failure to consistently report throughout the Public Health Emergency