Preventable Adverse Events Drop by 9% at U.S. Hospitals, CMS Says
On Wednesday, CMS announced that preventable adverse events at U.S. hospitals decreased by 9% from 2010 to 2012, AP/Washington Post reports (AP/Washington Post, 5/7).
The preliminary data on hospital-acquired conditions -- which include adverse drug events, falls and infections -- were collected by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (CMS report, 5/7).
According to the report, the HAC rate decreased from 145 HACs per 1,000 discharges in 2010 to 132 HACs per 1,000 discharges in 2012.
As a result of the HAC decrease, CMS estimates that hospitals from 2010 to 2012 prevented:
- 15,000 deaths;
- 560,000 patient injuries; and
- $4 billion in health spending.
Federal officials attributed the reductions in patient harm to the efforts of the Partnership for Patients, a patient-safety program developed under the Affordable Care Act that focuses on reducing preventable harm and easing transitions of care (McKinney, Modern Healthcare, 5/7).
Readmission Rates Continue To Decline
The report also found that preventable 30-day all-cause readmission rates for Medicare also fell to 17.5% in 2013 (Al-Faruque, The Hill, 5/7). The rate held steady at about 19% from 2007 to 2011, and then dropped to 18.5% in 2012 (Modern Healthcare, 5/7).
Overall, the decrease represents an 8% reduction in the readmission rate since 2011, according to CMS.
HHS said the reduction in the readmission rate resulted in 150,000 fewer hospital readmissions from January 2012 to December 2013 (HHS release, 5/7).
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