SHEA has submitted formal comments to CMS regarding the 2026 “Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System (LTCH PPS) proposed rule.”
The recommendations provided by SHEA offers “targeted recommendations to strengthen evidence-based patient safety, health equity, and data-driven care.”
Some of the recommendations provided by SHEA include urging CMS to “retain Social Drivers of Health (SDOH) measures until robust alternatives are developed, citing their critical role in addressing health disparities.” They also oppose “the removal of the Health Equity Assessment (HEA), emphasizing its importance in supporting hospitals that serve vulnerable populations.”
In addition, SHEA “supports updating baseline data for benchmarking and recommends the inclusion of new NHSN measures such as hospital-onset bacteremia (HOB) and antibiotic-treated C. difficile infection (HT-CDI). Additional recommendations include improved risk adjustment for complex cases and refinement of CAUTI criteria to enhance specificity.” They also support “the use of Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) to enhance data quality and reduce reporting burdens. The organization recommends prioritizing high-volume adverse events, engaging clinical experts, and providing technical support for implementation.”
Matt MacKenzie | Associate Editor
Matt is Associate Editor for Healthcare Purchasing News.
