Discharge Planning: Compliance with CMS Hospital & CAH CoPs (W6022)-2026 CMS DISCH PLANNING STDS Presentation

2026 CMS DISCH PLANNING STDS Presentation

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This document is a webinar summary on CMS discharge planning requirements for hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs), updated through 2025. It explains that discharge planning must focus on the patient’s goals, treatment preferences, and safe transition to post-hospital care, with active involvement of patients, caregivers, and support persons. Hospitals must identify early which patients may need discharge planning, provide timely evaluations when requested by the patient, physician, or representative, and regularly reassess and update the plan.<br /><br />A major theme is the IMPACT Act, which requires standardized, interoperable data collection across post-acute care settings and supports sharing relevant quality and resource-use information with patients to help them choose among home health agencies, SNFs, inpatient rehab facilities, and long-term care hospitals. Hospitals must also document that this information was shared and must help patients understand provider options, including financial interests, network limitations, and out-of-pocket costs when applicable.<br /><br />The presentation details what medical information must be transmitted at discharge, including diagnosis, course of care, functional and cognitive status, reconciled medications, allergies, pending tests, advance directives, and follow-up appointments. It emphasizes that incomplete or inaccurate discharge information can lead to readmissions and survey deficiencies.<br /><br />For CAHs, the requirements are similar but somewhat less specific regarding provider lists. The webinar also highlights survey expectations, QAPI review of discharge outcomes, and common failures such as missing medication reconciliation, poor communication with receiving facilities, and lack of updated plans. Overall, the message is that effective discharge planning is a continuous, documented, patient-centered process designed to reduce avoidable readmissions and improve continuity of care.

Keywords

discharge planning

CMS requirements

hospital discharge

critical access hospitals

IMPACT Act

post-acute care

medication reconciliation

patient-centered care

readmission reduction

continuity of care