CMS Issues FY 2026 Final Medicare Inpatient PPS, LTCH PPS Payment And Policy Updates

CMS released federal fiscal year 2026 Medicare short-term acute inpatient and long-term care hospital PPS final payment and policy updates. Highlights of the rules include the following. 

Inpatient PPS 

• Rate increase of 3.3%; 2.6% after accounting for a 0.7% productivity adjustment 
• Increase Medicare DSH uncompensated care payments by $2 billion 
• Removal of the low-wage index hospital policy 
• Request for information about a transition toward digital quality measurement in the quality reporting program 
• Promoting interoperability program updates 
• Hospital inpatient quality reporting and pay-for-performance program updates 
• Updates to the TEAM model 
• Requests for information about reducing regulation and administrative burdens in Medicare 

LTCH PPS 

• Rate increase of 3.4%; 2.7% after accounting for a 0.7% productivity adjustment 
• LTCH quality reporting program updates 

MHA published an issue brief for each of the proposed rules.