Freeman’s Medicare loss threat subsides

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have rescinded a termination notice it had sent the hospital. The centers published a notice on June 7 that Freeman was at risk of losing its Medicare reimbursement contract after surveys found that Freeman West Hospital in Joplin did not comply with Medicare regulations during four separate incidents in the past year.

The notice would have ended Freeman’s participation with Medicare on June 30.

The hospital said the centers accepted the plan of corrective action that Freeman submitted on June 8.

Freeman officials had said that the loss of Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements would mean the loss of 50 percent of the hospital’s revenue.

According to a Freeman news release, state surveyors evaluated recent changes implemented in the emergency department and found Freeman to be compliant.

The hospital also said it exceeded the center’s suggestions by enhancing the behavioral health component to provide a balance of both physical and behavioral health care.

“Freeman’s mission is to improve the health of the communities we serve, and this evaluation from (the centers) allowed us to make further improvements to our emergency department,” Freeman President and CEO Gary Duncan said in the release. “They have handled this situation professionally, making changes to improve services while treating a record number of patients.”

For more Joplin news, see Springfield Business Journal’s Regional Focus: Joplin section in the June 26 issue.