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Critical Access Hospital designation

Skyline Hospital has a Critical Access Hospital designation from the State of Washington. The Critical Access Hospital program was created by Congress in an effort to relieve the financial burden placed upon small rural hospitals who were greatly effected by the changes in the Medicare program in 1995 and the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. These changes have placed a severe financial burden on small hospitals that rely on Medicare to pay for up to 80% of services provided. Critical Access Hospitals are allowed more flexibility with federal rules and regulations and are also eligible for higher level of reimbursement from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

To qualify for the critical access designation, a hospital needs to meet several criteria:

1. Be located in a rural area;
2. Treat no more than 15 patients per day, on average;
3. Patients tend to stay relatively short periods of time in the hospital;
4. Hospital has a family-practice orientation.