§ 424.103 - Conditions for payment for emergency services.

§ 424.103 Conditions for payment for emergency services.

Medicare pays for emergency services furnished to a beneficiary by a nonparticipating hospital or under arrangements made by such a hospital if the conditions of this section are met.

(a) General requirements.

(1) The services are of the type that Medicare would pay for if they were furnished by a participating hospital.

(2) The hospital has in effect an election to claim payment for all emergency services furnished in a calendar year in accordance with § 424.104.

(3) The need for emergency services arose while the beneficiary was not an inpatient in a hospital.

(4) In the case of inpatient hospital services, the services are furnished during a period in which the beneficiary could not be safely discharged or transferred to a participating hospital or other institution.

(5) The determination that the hospital was the most accessible hospital available and equipped to furnish the services is made in accordance with § 424.106.

(b) Medical information requirements. A physician (or, if appropriate, the hospital) submits medical information that -

(1) Describes the nature of the emergency and specifies why it required that the beneficiary be treated in the most accessible hospital;

(2) Establishes that all the conditions in paragraph (a) of this section are met; and

(3) Indicates when the emergency ended, which, for inpatient hospital services, is the earliest date on which the beneficiary could be safely discharged or transferred to a participating hospital or other institution.