CMS proposes a new annual Acute Hospital Care at Home reporting requirement, comments close October 26
Oct 4, 2026 edition · GC-2026-0010 · Published 2026-10-04 · Version 2 · Proposed
CMS seeks October 26 comments on proposed annual hospital-at-home service reporting; the collection remains an OMB-approval request as of October 4.
What happened
CMS's August 27, 2026 Federal Register notice proposes a new Acute Hospital Care at Home Quantity, Intensity and Mix of Services collection, CMS-10971. It identifies annual reporting and seeks comments by October 26 on necessity, usefulness, burden estimates and ways to improve or automate collection. The notice estimates 365 respondents,13,000 annual responses and 13,000 hours. These are CMS's proposal estimates, not proof that a reporting obligation has already become operative or that every hospital must submit this tool now.
Section 6210(c) of the Consolidated Appropriations Act,2026 directs CMS to evaluate care in the hospital-at-home initiative. The proposed tool would describe services such as clinician visits, food and pharmacy services for patients admitted from emergency departments or transferred from inpatient units, supporting a report to Congress. Hospitals participate through individual CMS Certification Number waivers. The notice says CMS is seeking OMB approval; participating programs can assess whether existing documentation supplies the proposed counts and identify burden concerns during the comment period without treating the proposal as final implementation instructions.
Scope and timing
- Authority status
- Proposed
- Applicability
- Potentially applicable
- Audience
- Health systems
- Jurisdiction
- Federal
- Affected functions
- Clinical Operations, Compliance, Quality, HIM/CDI, Finance, Case Management
- Responsible owner
- Clinical Operations
- Recorded date
- 2026-10-26
- Date type
- comment
Why it matters
Data ownership and burden can be assessed during the comment period, but a proposed collection is distinct from a currently operative annual submission requirement.
Recommended action
Confirm participation, assess availability of the proposed service counts and identify data owners. Decide whether to comment on the collection and burden by October 26, while tracking approval and final instructions.
Related coverage
The October 26, 2026 comment deadline is the compliance calendar item; the reporting build is owned here. Compliance Sweep →
Sources
- Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request, CMS-10971 Acute Hospital Care at Home QIMS Data Collection ToolOfficial · Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Federal Register · 2026-08-27 · Source review 2026-09-10
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