Fact Sheets

The American Hospital Association (AHA) fact sheets on important issues facing hospitals and health systems. Fact Sheets define the terms of issues facing hospitals and health systems and provide in-depth explanations of the AHA's position on these issues.

Since going into effect, CMS has made several changes to the Hospital Price Transparency Rule requirements on hospitals. The most recent set of changes, including requiring hospitals to use a standard machine-readable file format, go into effect July 1, 2024.
For the past several years, the health care field has experienced a sharp increase in workplace violence. The COVID-19 pandemic placed significant stress on the entire health care system, and in some situations, patients, visitors and family members have attacked health care staff and jeopardized…
It is broadly acknowledged that Medicare reimburses hospitals less than the cost of providing care and their reimbursement rates are non-negotiable.
Medicare pays most acute-care hospitals under the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS). Some of these hospitals receive additional support from Medicare to help address potential financial challenges associated with being rural, geographically isolated and low volume.
NEW: National and State Impacts of Site-neutral Provisions in the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act (H.R. 5378
The Bipartisan Primary Care and Health Workforce Expansion Act (S. 2840) includes a provision that would prevent doctors and hospitals from negotiating reasonable agreements with commercial health insurance plans.
Congress is considering several bills that would impose additional site-neutral payment reductions for services provided in hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs). A description of these bills, AHA’s take on the proposals and the potential impact these proposals would have on Medicare…
The AHA strongly opposes policies to decrease hospital reimbursements by eliminating “facility fees,” which are the direct and indirect costs that allow a hospital to continue to provide services to patients and serve the needs of their community.
We urge Congress to increase the number of Medicare-supported GME residency positions. The AHA supports the bipartisan Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021 (H.R.2256/S.834) which adds 14,000 Medicare-funded residency slots over the next seven years.
The Issue Two trends in health insurance coverage are driving an increase in medical debt: inadequate health care coverage and high-deductible health plans that intentionally push more costs onto patients. These plans leave individuals financially vulnerable when seeking medical care, despite…