INSURANCE COUNCIL ON AGING - ORANGE COUNTY Challenging Hospital Discharge Decisions During a hospital stay, Medicare beneficiaries have important rights to receive the medical care they need. You have these rights whether you are enrolled in the Original Medicare or a Medicare health plan. To protect you from being discharged too quickly, Medicare gives you the right to appeal hospital discharge decisions. It also requires the hospital to provide any discharge planning services you need. Notifying You of Your Rights To make sure you are informed about your 100 Answers Guide 2015 discharge rights in a timely manner, hospitals must give you the Important Message from Medicare twice, once upon admission and again before discharge. The hospital must first give you the Important Notice from Medicare at or near admission, but no later than two days after admission. At that time, it must ask you to sign and date the notice. The hospital must give you the original copy of the signed notice and keep a copy for its records. Before you are discharged, the hospital must give you another copy of the Important Message from COUNCIl ON AGING - ORANGe COUNTY IS A 501 (C)3 NONpROFIT CORpORATION. TO DISTRIbUTe ANSweRS FRee OF COST, we mUST Sell ADveRTISING SpACe. wHIle we AppReCIATe THe pAID lISTINGS IN ANSweRS, THeIR Aging and Disability Resource Connection | 800-510-2020 | www.adrcoc.org INClUSION does not imply a recommendation or endorsement of products or services by coaoc. AlwAYS be A vIGIlANT CONSUmeR. veRIFY INFORmATION AND SeeK ReFeReNCeS wHeRe AppROpRIATe.