Rural Emergency Hospital Financial Stability Act

The Rural Emergency Hospital Financial Stability Act would amend Medicaid payment rules to explicitly treat rural emergency hospital (REH) services as outpatient hospital services for Medicaid reimbursement. It also adds a provision to allow nursing facility services provided in a distinct part unit of a rural emergency hospital to be treated similarly to nursing facility services under Medicaid. The changes would take effect on enactment and apply to services furnished after that date. Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to issue final regulations within 12 months to implement these amendments. In plain terms, the bill solidifies that REHs should be paid under the same outpatient hospital framework for Medicaid, and it covers certain nursing facility services located within REHs, aiming to support the financial stability of rural emergency hospitals.