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In a major policy change projected to save lives and millions of dollars, Medicare will stop paying US hospitals to correct 8 preventable medical errors caused by their own negligence, commencing in October 2008.
The new payment guidelines are part of a 3-year effort by Medicare, the largest health care payer in the United States, to improve care for elderly and disabled Americans. Under guidelines issued in August, Medicare will no longer pay hospitals to retrieve objects, such as sponges or surgical tools, left in patients after surgery, or to treat problems arising from air embolisms or incompatible blood transfusions. Nor will it pay the additional costs of treating bedsores developed while in the hospital, injuries caused by hospital falls, or infections arising from prolonged use of urinary and vascular catheters or after coronary artery bypass surgery.
"The overall mission of the Medicare program is changing," said Herb Kuhn, deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. "Our efforts are focused on becoming an active purchaser, rather than a passive payer, of health care."
The Bush administration estimates the new regulations will save $20 million annually, but others predict far greater savings. About 1.7 million Americans contract infections each year in hospitals - almost 100 000 die - with Medicare paying to...