title: Declining per-patient costs not just from shorter LOS.
abstract: Hospital LOS has declined in recent years, and so have per-patient costs. But are the two related? Researchers writing in the current Health Affairs identify other reasons for declining costs; their findings may influence how Medicare establishes case rates.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational / Q000191:economics*; D017721:Hospital Costs / Q000639:trends*; D006761:Hospitals / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends; D006278:Medicare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D010351:Patient Discharge / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D019467:Subacute Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States