Study Shows That Home Health Cut Costs in Joint Replacement Patients

Posted on Monday, June 20, 2016 1:47 PM

After a major joint repair surgery, new data has proven that the use of home care services result in cost-effective care and lower readmission rates for Medicare patients.

The data analysis was conducted by Dobson | DaVanzo & Associates and released by the Alliance for Home Health Quality and Innovation. The statistics observe the distribution of discharges for patients from the hospital to various post-acute care settings between October 2011 and September 2014.

“The data analysis points to the value of home health care in the context of the CJR model,” Teresa Lee, executive director of the Alliance, tells Home Health Care News.

When home health is the first post-acute setting after a hospital discharge, the data has proven that patients receive the following benefits:
• Lower Medicare episode payments
• Lower readmission rates than facility-based settings
• Significant savings for the Medicare program when patients turn to home health after a hospital stay
• They are far less likely to undergo fractures following surgery

“However, HHA first setting episodes had slightly higher Medicare payments and readmission rates compared to Community care, which includes physician and outpatient therapy services,” according to the data analysis. “Higher Medicare payments for HHA episodes are likely attributed to the higher clinical severity compared to patients who are discharged home with no formal post-acute care.”

For the full article, click here.


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