Medicare use and cost of short-stay hospital services by enrollees with cataract, 1984.

In this article, we present data on aged and disabled Medicare hospital insurance enrollees discharged with the principal diagnosis of cataract from short-stay hospitals. Medical technology has reduced the risk of cataract surgery and the time needed to perform the surgery. As a result, the number of enrollees undergoing cataract surgery has increased. Also, such surgery has been shifted from inpatient hospitals to outpatient facilities. However, outpatient reimbursement for cataract surgery often equals or exceeds inpatient payments. To address this inequity, Congress legislated payment limits for cataract surgery.