Justices Weigh Whether Hospitals Merit Higher Medicare Pay (1)

US Supreme Court justices Tuesday tried to untangle the complicated rules of federal hospital reimbursement during oral arguments in a case in which plaintiffs want greater clarity on a 2022 decision that upheld the way Medicare calculates payments for certain hospitals.

The case, Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Becerra, is being pressed by more than 200 hospitals and revolves around the meaning of the phrase “entitled to benefits.” It involves the federal Supplemental Security Income program for low-income disabled and elderly people and the Medicare “disproportionate share hospital” adjustment, or “DSH payment” enhancement, for hospitals that serve a large ...