The federal government will penalize several South Dakota hospitals for having higher than average readmission rates for Medicare patients.
Avera Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton is being penalized with a reduction in Medicare payments of point five seven percent.
President and CEO Doug Ekeren says Medicare is looking at readmissions over five broad categories of treatment…
Ekeren says they were penalized for readmissions in one category over several years…
Ekeren says they support the process that Medicare uses to rate admission rates, and continually work to improve care…
Ekeren says the Medicare reduction will have an effect on the hospitals bottom line.
Seven other hospitals in the state were also penalized in the latest report.
