Long-Term Care Hospital PPS

Long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) furnish extended medical and rehabilitative care to individuals with clinically complex problems, such as multiple acute or chronic conditions, that need hospital-level care for relatively extended periods. To qualify as an LTCH for Medicare payment, a facility must meet Medicare's conditions of participation for acute care hospitals and have an average inpatient length of stay greater than 25 days. Medicare recognized 436 LTCHs in 2011.

In addition to this Web site, AHA members may also be interested in visiting the Constituency Section for Long-Term Care and Rehabilitation which seeks to improve continuity of care between acute, pre- and post-acute, and long-term services, and to support efforts to improve delivery of health-related services to chronically ill, elderly, and disabled persons requiring continuing care in institutions, the community, and the home.