Long-term acute care facility

The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this article, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new article, as appropriate. (March 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

A long-term acute care hospital (LTACH), also known as a long-term care hospital (LTCH), is a hospital specializing in treating patients requiring extended hospitalization. Hospitals specializing in long-term care have existed for decades in the form of sanatoriums for patients with tuberculosis and other chronic diseases. The modern hospital known as an LTACH came into existence as a result of the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999.^[1] The Act defines an LTACH as “a hospital which has an average inpatient length of stay (as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary)) of greater than 25 days.”^[2] Traditionally, LTACHs provide care for patients receiving prolonged mechanical ventilation.

LTACHs have a diverse set of characteristics which influence the ways in which they operate. Physically, LTACHs exist in two models, hospital within hospital or free-standing. Hospital within hospital LTACHs are physically located inside of a short term acute care hospital and often look similar to a separated unit of the hospital. Free-standing LTACHs are LTACHs in separate buildings from short term acute care hospitals. LTACHs can be non-profit or for profit. They also can be associated with a health care system, post-acute care system, or a system of LTACHs.