‘Bill of Rights’ for Medicare Patients Issued

Facing complaints that elderly Medicare patients are being dumped out of hospital beds before they are well, the government today released a “bill of rights” spelling out how the aged can fight premature hospital discharges.

The statement, including a telephone number at which patients can file an emergency appeal, will be given to each of the 9 million Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized each year, Health and Human Services Secretary Otis R. Bowen said.

Consumer groups have complained in recent months that Medicare beneficiaries are sometimes dumped out of their hospital beds prematurely because their preset Medicare payments have run out.

The American Assn. of Retired Persons and the People’s Medical Society called on the Reagan Administration in November to inform Medicare patients of their legal rights against premature discharge.

Based on Average Cost

Bowen did not mention those complaints directly. However, he did say there is no evidence of a “systematic increase” in premature discharges, and he noted that both consumer groups and medical industry groups were consulted in drafting the rights statement.

Since October, 1983, payment rates have been based on the average cost of treating a particular illness. As planned, hospitals would accept that payment for all patients, knowing that some would get well sooner and some would take longer.

But the consumer groups said too many hospitals have treated the Medicare payment level as a maximum and have tried to dump patients when the average length of stay is reached, whether the patient is ready or not.

The model statement released by the department tells Medicare beneficiaries that their discharge date is supposed to be based solely on medical needs, not on Medicare payments.