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The Medicare statute of the Social Security Amendments of 1965 granted The Joint Commission’s hospital accreditation program unique deeming authority. This means that hospitals with Joint Commission accreditation are deemed to meet the federal Conditions of Participation and are eligible for reimbursement from the Medicare or Medicaid programs.
On July 15, 2008, the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 became law.
The new law requires all accrediting bodies, including The Joint Commission, to apply to CMS for hospital deeming authority. This is a process that The Joint Commission and all other accrediting bodies already go through when seeking deeming authority for providing quality oversight of other types of health care organizations, such as home care, laboratory and ambulatory surgery. The Joint Commission’s deeming authority for hospitals remains in effect during the application process.
The Joint Commission has submitted its deeming application to CMS. As part of the deeming application process, The Joint Commission has made changes to its hospital accreditation standards. The Joint Commission has posted the changes online, displaying exactly what standards and language have been impacted. As part of the application process, further changes to the standards may be made. CMS’ final decision regarding the deeming application will be made later this year. The Joint Commission is confident that it will receive deeming authority.
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