PART 2: The Cost of Delay — How Slow Home Health Access Drives Excess Hospital Spending

In Part 1 of this series, we explored how timely Home Health admissions increase overall access and utilization. The same delays that limit access also carry a significant—and avoidable—financial cost for hospitals and the healthcare system as a whole.

Delayed Home Health Means Longer Hospital Stays

When Home Health services are not available promptly, hospitals are often forced to keep patients longer than clinically necessary while awaiting a safe discharge plan. Across Washington State, inpatient length of stay for patients discharged to Home Health exceeds both expected benchmarks and the national average.

These excess inpatient days negatively impact:

·        Patient experience, by delaying return home

·        Hospital capacity, by tying up beds needed for new admissions

·        Care efficiency, by keeping patients in higher-cost settings without clinical benefit

How We Pay for the Financial Cost of Delay

Statewide, Washington hospitals incur more than an estimated $9.5 million annually in excess cost due to clinically unnecessary inpatient length of stay for Medicare FFS patients awaiting Home Health discharge. These costs are not driven by patient complexity, but by delayed access to Home Health care.

Spokane again tells a story of what’s possible. Despite being the 4^th largest county in Washington, Spokane hospitals account for less than 2% of the statewide excess cost burden from clinically unnecessary inpatient days for patients discharging to Home Health. More timely Home Health access in Spokane translates into shorter hospital stays and lower cost impact.

An Opportunity for Washington

Improving the timeliness of Home Health admissions after a hospital discharge is not just good business practice for the home health agency, it benefits our entire community by expanding access, reducing unnecessary inpatient hospital days, and lowering cost of care. 

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