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(OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. - November 30, 2009) The Department of Health and Human Services' Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved the continuation of deeming authority for The Joint Commission's hospital accreditation program through July 15, 2014.
The CMS designation means that hospitals accredited by The Joint Commission may choose to be "deemed" as meeting Medicare and Medicaid certification requirements. CMS found that The Joint Commission's standards for hospitals meet or exceed those established by the Medicare and Medicaid program. CMS' notice of the four-year approval was announced on November 27.
"The Joint Commission is proud of its tradition of collaboration with CMS to provide quality oversight of hospitals," says Mark Pelletier, R.N., M.S., executive director, Accreditation and Certification Services, The Joint Commission. "Accreditation is a proven method for improving the care of Medicare beneficiaries."
Accreditation is voluntary and seeking deemed status through accreditation is an option, not a requirement. Hospitals seeking Medicare approval may choose to be surveyed either by an accrediting body, such as The Joint Commission, or by state surveyors on behalf of CMS. All deemed status surveys are unannounced, a policy The Joint Commission instituted into its accreditation process in 2006.
The Joint Commission's hospital accreditation program has held deeming authority since the inception of the Medicare program in 1965. The Joint Commission is participating in a new hospital deeming authority process required under the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. The Joint Commission's hospital accreditation program had previously been granted unique statutory deeming authority.
In addition to hospitals, The Joint Commission has federal deeming authority for ambulatory surgery centers, critical access hospitals, durable medical equipment suppliers, home health, hospice and laboratories.