Managing Director CARF International Middletown, New Jersey, United States
Objectives : 1. To assess CMS outcomes data and compare performance of CARF-accredited and non CARF-accredited IRFs. 2. Identify average cost savings in individual IRFs as well as across a system of care in the United States.
Design: This study used data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that was collected between 10/01/2023–09/30/2024 from 340 CARF-accredited facilities and 885 non-CARF-accredited facilities.* There were approximately 190,000 patient stays in CARF-accredited organizations and approximately 620,000 patient stays in non-CARF-accredited organizations. CARF-accredited IRF outcomes were compared to all non-CARF-accredited IRF outcomes in readmissions, major falls, and pressure ulcers.
Results: When comparing CARF’s 340 IRFs to 340 non-CARF IRFs using 190,000 patient stays:
1. CARF-accredited IRFs have an average of 12.4% lower rates of readmission compared to non-CARF-accredited IRFs. CARF-accredited IRFs have approximately 2,000 fewer readmissions annually which results in a decreased cost of care of approximately $32,000,000 annually in the U.S.
2. CARF-accredited IRFs have an average of 18.8% lower rates of major falls compared to non-CARF-accredited IRFs. CARF-accredited IRFs each have an average of approximately 60 fewer major falls annually which results in a decreased cost of care related to major falls of approximately $2,175,240 annually.
3. CARF-accredited IRFs have an average of 15% lower rates of new or worsening pressure ulcers compared to non CARF-accredited IRFs. CARF-accredited IRFs eac hhave approximately 362 fewer new or worsened pressure ulcers annually which results in a decreased cost of care of approximately $7,880,772 annually.
Conclusion: Significant differences were found in CARF-accredited IRFs when comparing these types of IRFs versus non CARF-accredited IRFs in the United States. Average cost savings as a result of these lower incident rates were profound and indicate that individual IRFs and systems of care could realize increased efficiency and resource utilization across the continuum of care.
