All 57 hospitals in Oregon have agreed to not seek payment for costs associated with serious medical errors if an internal investigation shows the event was preventable and under the hospital’s control, according to a resolution by the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems’ board of trustees, reports Modern Healthcare.
The resolution is similar to agreements adopted in several other states (Washington, Vermont, Minnesota and Massachussetts) as well as to a rule introduced last year by CMS to cease Medicare payments for eight preventable conditions that can be acquired in hospitals. In addition, Aetna and Blue Cross Blue Shield Association last month announced an agreement to stop payments to hospitals for treatment that results from serious medical errors.
The 24 adverse events that Oregon hospitals will no longer charge for include those identified by the Oregon Patient Safety Commission and the National Quality Forum, such as operating on the wrong body part or patient; patient death or serious injury as a result of using a faulty drug or device provided by the hospital; and acquisition of serious bed sores after admission.