Securing Access to Care for Seniors in Critical Condition Act of 2024

This bill changes Medicare payment rules for long-term care hospitals treating critically ill seniors. It adds a new "high acuity criterion" requiring that a patient's discharge must be assigned to a Medicare payment category with a severity score of at least 0.8 (measured by the MS-LTC-DRG system) and occur on or after October 1, 2025, to qualify for certain payment adjustments. This directly affects long-term care hospitals that serve seniors in critical condition, ensuring Medicare payments better reflect the complexity of care for these patients. The change modifies how site-neutral payments apply, aiming to support facilities providing high-acuity care to vulnerable seniors.