Hospital Inpatient Services Modernization Act

S. 2237 would extend the Acute Hospital Care at Home program, which allows hospitals to provide acute-level medical care to eligible patients in their homes rather than in traditional hospital settings. The program would be extended for five additional years through 2030. This program was originally established in 2020 during the pandemic and has since expanded to more than 200 hospitals across 34 states. The bill would also require the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct a comprehensive study comparing home-based care with traditional inpatient care on metrics including quality, patient satisfaction, readmission rates, infection rates, and mortality rates. Based on the study findings, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services would issue formal health and safety standards for the program going forward. If enacted, the legislation would provide continuity for hospitals currently operating hospital-at-home programs and allow eligible Medicare patients to receive hospital-level care in the comfort of their homes, potentially reducing hospital-acquired infections and accelerating recovery times.