Reduced FY 2026 LTCH payment updates ‘inadequate,’ AHA tells CMS

The AHA expressed concerns (LINK) to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today on payment updates for the fiscal year 2026 proposed rule for the long-term care hospital prospective payment system. The updates include an insufficient market basket update and reduced overall payments to LTCHs due to an increase in the high-cost outlier fixed-loss amount.

“The inadequate market basket updates, including the misguided productivity adjustment, combined with the untenable rise in the HCO FLA, threatens to lead to further closures in a field that has already seen the number of hospitals decrease by 25% over the last 10 years,” the AHA wrote.

The AHA commented separately on the rule’s inpatient PPS and Transforming Episode Accountability Model proposals.