Medicare program linked to reduced readmission disparities between black, white patients

Editor's Note

Black and white disparities in hospital readmission rates narrowed after the introduction of Medicare’s Hospital Readmission Reduction Program that penalizes higher than expected readmissions; however, black and white gaps still persist and minority serving hospitals continued to be penalized more by the program, this study finds.

During the penalty-free implementation period, readmission rates improved over preimplementation trends for whites and blacks, with a significantly greater decline among blacks (0.45% vs 0.36%). After penalties began, readmission improvement slowed for both blacks and whites.

Similarly, minority serving hospitals had greater reductions in readmissions than other hospitals, but they continue to be more likely to be penalized by the Medicare program.

To better incentivize and reward all hospitals, policymakers should consider changes to how penalties are determined, the authors say.