CMS updating guidance on shared space arrangements

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is working to finalize updated guidance related to co-location, which should clarify policies governing how hospitals can share space with other providers, the agency told the AHA last week. In a meeting with agency officials, including David Wright, the director of the Survey and Certification Group within the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, CMS informed AHA that the new guidance has been drafted and is in review. AHA has been urging CMS to provide more transparency about the agency’s expectations for shared space and to allow for flexibility where needed and appropriate, especially for rural areas where hospitals may have visiting specialists. “We continue to appreciate CMS’s openness to hearing our concerns,” said Nancy Foster, AHA vice president for quality and patient safety policy. “We have asked CMS to make this guidance a priority and to align their policies as much as possible with the agency’s broader mission to promote coordinated, patient-centered care across the continuum.”