[dbussone]

Originally Posted by Warren Kiefer

I LOVE YOUR RESPONSE !! But let me tell you what I was told. First, I recently was told that most hospitals have a Hospitalist. I was also told the same Hospitalist serves both the Villages hospital and the Leesburg hospital. This information came from a board member who did say they were working on the problem of delayed discharges. In my case, my nurse said she had prepared all the necessary paperwork and only that remaining was the release signature of the Hospital doctor. After many hours, I did discuss my plight with the head nurse who told me that if I chose to leave without the hospital doctor's release, there was a chance Medicare would refuse to participate in the cost of my stay. This concerned me enough that I with street clothing on, waited nearly 9 hours for the final signature.

P.S. if Medicare did have a problem you would win the appeal and most likely the hospital would not receive reimbursement. And they could not turn around and try to make you pay. Guess why? You did have an appropriate discharge from your physician, the Hospitalist was an agent of the hospital acting on the hospital's behalf - not yours - and the Hospitalist was not involved in your care.