MS-DRGs a top issue in 2008

PriceWaterhouseCoopers sent out a news release this week on the health care issues to watch for in 2008. Changes in Medicare's Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (IPPS) made their list:

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has changed the way it pays hospitals, adding 200 diagnosis codes that more precisely recognize the severity of illness among patients. As a result, hospitals that treat sicker patients will be reimbursed more for doing so, potentially leveling the playing field between general and specialty hospitals and between rural and urban hospitals. That, combined with CMS's new stance to not pay for certain conditions resulting from medical errors, infections and other maladies acquired in a hospital, mean some hospitals may see a decline in revenue. In 2008, watch for commercial payers to follow in CMS's footsteps and an increased demand for medical coding staff.

Almost three months in to Medicare's fiscal year, what problems are you seeing? Or, what problems were you expecting that haven't materialized? Share your thoughts in the comments.

This will be our last post of the year. Thanks to all the readers of the S-DRG Report for making all of our work worthwhile. Happy Holidays, and stay tuned in 2008!