Are you or a family member a Medicare resident of a skilled nursing facility, perhaps rehabilitating after a hospital stay? Have you or your relative asked to leave the facility for a few hours or a day for a special event or purpose such as Christmas dinner or a short visit home? Frequently, to the great disappointment of the resident, the facility may tell the resident that if he or she leaves, even for a few hours, he or she will lose Medicare coverage.
This is not accurate. Medicare rules state: “An outside pass or short leave of absence for the purpose of attending a special religious service, holiday meal, family occasion, going on a car ride, or a trial visit home, is not, by itself evidence that the individual no longer needs to be in a skilled nursing facility for the receipt of required skilled care.” As long as the resident returns to the facility by midnight, the facility can bill Medicare for the day's stay. Medicare rules state that it is “not appropriate” for a nursing home to tell a resident otherwise.
In short, you should feel free to talk to nursing home staff about a short visit out of the facility. The nursing home staff may have legitimate concerns about how such a trip may affect your health and safety, but should not refuse your request based on misinformation about Medicare coverage.
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