4123-7-24 Payment of hospital bills.

(A) Direct reimbursement will not be made to members of a hospital resident staff.

(B) Payment for personal comfort items, which include, but are not limited to, telephones, television, and private rooms provided at the patient’s request, are not compensable.

(1) Bureau fees for hospital inpatient services will be based on usual and customary methods of payment, such as prospective payment systems, including diagnosis related groups (DRG), per diem rates, rates based on hospital costs to charge ratios or percent of allowed charges.

(2) Except in cases of emergency as defined in rule 4123-6-01 of the Administrative Code, prior authorization must be obtained in advance of all hospitalization. The hospital must notify the self-insured employer of emergency inpatient admissions within one business day of the admission.

Failure to comply with this rule shall be sufficient ground for denial of room and board charges by the self-insured employer from the date of admission up to the actual date of notification. Room and board charges denied pursuant to this rule may not be billed to the injured worker.

(D) Bureau fees for hospital outpatient services.

(1) Bureau fees for hospital outpatient services, including emergency services, will be reimbursed in accordance with usual and customary methods of payment which may include prospectively determined rates, allowable fee maximums, ambulatory payment categories (APC), and hospital cost to charge ratios, or a percent of allowed charges, as determined by the bureau.

(2) Treatment in the emergency room of a hospital must be of an immediate nature to constitute an emergency as defined in this chapter. Prior authorization of such treatment is not required. However, in situations where the emergency room is being utilized to deliver non-emergency care, notification will be provided to the injured worker, the hospital, and the provider of record that continued use of the emergency room for non-emergent services will not be reimbursed.

(E) The bureau may establish the same or different fees for in-state and out-of-state hospitals based on the above reimbursement methodologies.

(F) Payment will be made for hospital services based on rules 4123-7-01 and 4123-7-02 of the Administrative Code.

HISTORY: Replaces rule 4121-17-24; Eff 1-1-78; 9-1-93; Replaces: 4123-7-24 Eff 2-14-05

Promulgated Under: 119.03

Statutory Authority: RC 4121.12, 4121.121, 4121.30, 4121.31, 4121.44, 4123.05, 4123.66

Rule Amplifies: RC 4121.121, 4121.31, 4121.44, 4123.66

R.C. 119.032 review dates: 03/01/2009