A<unk>  is an episode when a patient who had been discharged from a hospital is admitted again within a specified time interval.<unk>  rates have increasingly been used as an outcome measure in health services research and as a quality benchmark for health systems. Generally, higher<unk>  rate indicates ineffectiveness of treatment during past hospitalizations.<unk>  rates were formally included in reimbursement decisions for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, which penalizes health systems with higher than expected<unk>  rates through the<unk>  Reduction Program. Since the inception of this penalty, there have been other programs that have been introduced, with the aim to decrease<unk> . The Community Based Care Transition Program, Independence At Home Demonstration Program, and Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Initiative are all examples of these programs. While many time frames have been used historically, the most common time frame is within 30 days of discharge, and this is what CMS uses.
Hospital readmission
Hospital separation
Inpatient care
Hospital bed
Vehicle extrication
Early goal-directed therapy
Outdoor emergency care
Unplanned extubation