A Recap: WA Home Health Speed of Admission

Recently, Berg Data Corner highlighted how timely Home Health access is a key driver of both care utilization and total cost—and how Washington State is falling behind.

In 2024, only 38.8% of Washington patients were admitted to Home Health within two days of hospital discharge, compared to 68.4% nationally, making Washington one of the slowest states in the country.

Why Speed Matters

In article Part 1- Why Speed Matters, we describe how speed of admission impacts whether patients receive Home Health services at all.

• National utilization: 80.9 admits per 1,000 Medicare FFS beneficiaries

• Washington utilization: 48.6 admits per 1,000 Medicare FFS beneficiaries

Communities with faster admissions have higher Home Health utilization, suggesting delays suppress appropriate care rather than reflect lower clinical need.

The Cost of Delay

In article, Part 2 – The Cost of Delay, we show how delayed Home Health access leads to longer hospital stays, excess cost, and reduced hospital system capacity:

• WA inpatient length of stay for patients discharging to Home Health exceeds expected benchmarks and national averages.

• WA hospitals incur $9.5M+ annually in excess costs due to Home Health delay.

These delays negatively affect:

• Patient experience (delayed return home)

• Hospital capacity (beds unavailable for new admissions)

• Care efficiency (reduced access to acute care beds)

Spokane: What’s Possible

Spokane County demonstrates what strong performance in WA looks like today:

• Spokane HHAs have the fastest Home Health admits after hospital discharge in WA State.

• Higher Home Health Utilization: Spokane 66.0 per 1,000 vs. WA State 48.6 per 1,000

• Avoidable Cost impact: Spokane County <2% of the statewide excess hospital cost burden  

To learn more about key trends in your community of service, contact Berg Data Solutions at: sarah@bergdatasolutions.com or marc@bergdatasolutions.com.