CMS posts Final Rule

Today, CMS posted its Final Rule for changes to its FY 2008 IPPS. A brief review of the CMS press release and the Final Rule reveals that:

1. The new severity-adjusted DRGs wil be phased in over two years, rather than one year, as detailed in April’s proposed rule, and
2. The “behavioral offset” cuts will be implemented.

Watch for more posts on this blog in the coming days after we have a chance to read and analyze the Final Rule. In the meantime, here are links for:

• The CMS press release.
• The full content of the Final Rule (reader beware: it's more than 2,000 pages long).
  

The deadline to submit comments on the Final Rule is Nov. 20, 2007. Instructions on how and where to submit comments are contained in the Final Rule.