Quote:
Originally Posted by retiredguy123
I did read it. As understand it, if the patient is stable, they can be transferred to another facilty. If they are not stable, the ER can stabilze them and then transfer them to another faciility. Post No. 16 describes how that process can work. It sounds more efficient to me, but not as profitable for the ER.
|
That is correct. But the ER has to evaluate the patient first and determine stability. Then there has to be an acceptable reason for the transfer, the most common being patient request and the availability of a specific service at the accepting facility that is not available at the originating ER. Lack of insurance in and of itself is not an acceptable reason. Then the paperwork at both ends has to be filled out correctly. There was a time, and I don't know if it has changed, that filling out the paperwork incorrectly was considered a COBRA violation. The fine for violating COBRA starts at $50,000 AT EACH END and goes up from there. As you can imagine, there is a great deal of care taken in any transfer.