Avoidable readmissions come at a great cost to patients/residents, healthcare providers, and taxpayers, a $25 billion cost to be exact. This is the estimated amount that avoidable readmissions cost the nation on a yearly basis and is one of the largest contributors to the enormous growth in national health care costs. Readmissions are the result of several difference aspects from incomplete treatment, poor post-acute care, lack of coordination in discharge planning, or even the unavailability of social supports. Recently the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) began penalizing hospitals for avoidable readmissions as part of the hospital readmission reduction program supported by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Now that these penalties have become the “law of the land”, CMS is moving onto the next phase of in care continuum, post-acute-care, specifically skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). It would only seem logical that hospital and SNFs would come together and recognize each other as tangible partners to not only improve care coordination but also quality and service for the patients/residents. There are many models for SNFs and hospitals to follow that will allow them to create partnerships, improve transitions, and reduce readmissions.
