CMS proposes changes to requirements for accrediting organizations
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Feb. 8 released a intended to strengthen oversight of organizations that accredit health care providers certified by the Medicare and Medicaid programs and prevent conflicts of interest. If finalized, the rule would prohibit accrediting organizations from giving a hospital or other health care facility advance notice of a survey; penalize hospitals that receive a condition-level citation during a validation survey conducted by state surveyors on behalf of CMS; and require accrediting organizations to use CMS’s Conditions of Participation as their minimum accreditation standards. The rule also would revise the survey process for psychiatric hospitals, among other provisions. CMS will publish the rule in the Feb. 15 Federal Register, with comments due by April 15. AHA members will receive more information about the proposed rule soon.