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DCHS opts for private rooms, lowers bed count

Reclassification allows for better Medicare reimbursement

IRON MOUNTAIN — In a response to changes in the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Rural Coding requirements, Dickinson County Healthcare System has lowered its bed count from 96 to 49 beds.

The reclassification allows DCHS to receive a higher reimbursement rate for its rural clinic CMS patients.

“The change in bed count has no negative impact on our daily operating procedures and the care we provide is still of the highest quality,” said John Schon, DCHS administrator-chief executive. “Our admission census for the last four years has never exceeded the 49 bed number, so it made perfect sense to make the change.”

The lower bed count went into effect Jan. 1. The switch required removing one bed from the current rooms that had previously housed two beds, or up to two patients per room.

“The lower bed count is a good thing for our patients,” said Sue Hadley, chief of nursing. “It allowed us to convert nearly all of our rooms from shared rooms into private suites. The patients, their families and friends now have more room and ultimately more comfort during their visit to the hospital,” she said.

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