SHM Supports the Hospital Inpatient Services Modernization Act
March 04, 2022
SHM's Policy Efforts
SHM supports legislation that affects hospital medicine and general healthcare, advocating for hospitalists and the patients they serve.
The Honorable Tom Carper
United States Senate
513 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Tim Scott
United States Senate
104 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senators Carper and Scott,
The Society of Hospital Medicine (SHM), representing the nation’s hospitalists, is pleased to offer our support of the Hospital Inpatient Services Modernization Act. This legislation will extend the Hospital at Home waiver for two years after the expiration of the public health emergency (PHE).
Hospitalists are front-line physicians in America’s hospitals whose professional focus is the general medical care of hospitalized patients, many of whom are Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. Due to their focus on the hospital setting, hospitalists have been the backbone of the nation’s COVID-19 response, caring for hospitalized COVID patients throughout the country.
Due to the need to expand hospital capacity throughout the pandemic, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) introduced the Hospitals without Walls program, later expanded into the Acute Hospital Care at Home program. This initiative allowed hospitals to provide services outside of the existing hospital and treat eligible patients at home. Patients with less intense care needs were able to receive care at the lowest and safest level of care. During the pandemic, some hospitalists have been asked to provide care and lead Hospital at Home programs and have recognized how the program complements and supports their work in hospitals. Passing the Hospital Inpatient Services Modernization Act will help prevent care disruptions following the expiration of the PHE and enable more time to understand the impact of the program on patient care.
SHM is pleased to support this legislation and looks forward to advocating for its passage. If you have any questions, please contact Josh Boswell at jboswell@hospitalmedicine.org. Thank you for your leadership on this important issue.
Sincerely,
Jerome Siy, MD, MHA, SFHM
President, Society of Hospital Medicine