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42 C.F.R. § 412.273   Withdrawing an application, terminating an approved 3-year reclassification, or canceling a previous withdrawal or termination.

Title 42: Public Health
PART 412—PROSPECTIVE PAYMENT SYSTEMS FOR INPATIENT HOSPITAL SERVICES
Subpart L—The Medicare Geographic Classification Review Board
Composition and Procedures

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§ 412.273   Withdrawing an application, terminating an approved 3-year reclassification, or canceling a previous withdrawal or termination.

(a) Timing of a withdrawal. The MGCRB allows a hospital, or group of hospitals, to withdraw its application if the request for withdrawal is submitted to the MGCRB during the following time periods:

(1) At any time before the MGCRB issues a decision on the application; or

(2) After the MGCRB issues a decision, provided that the request for withdrawal is received by the MGCRB within 45 days of publication of CMS's annual notice of proposed rulemaking concerning changes to the inpatient hospital prospective payment system and proposed payment rates for the fiscal year for which the application has been filed.

(b) Request for termination of approved 3-year wage index reclassifications.

(1) A hospital, or a group of hospitals, that has been issued a decision on its application for a 3-year reclassification for wage index purposes only or for redesignation to a statewide wage index and has not withdrawn that application under the procedures specified in paragraph (a) of this section may request termination of its approved 3-year wage index reclassification under the following conditions:

(i) The request to terminate must be received by the MGCRB within 45 days of the publication of the annual notice of proposed rulemaking concerning changes to the inpatient hospital prospective payment system and proposed payment rates for the fiscal year for which the termination is to apply.

(ii) A request to terminate a 3-year reclassification will be effective only for the full fiscal year(s) remaining in the 3-year period at the time the request is received. Requests for terminations for part of a fiscal year will not be considered.

(2) Reapplication within the approved 3-year period. (i) If a hospital elects to withdraw its wage index application after the MGCRB has issued its decision, it may cancel its withdrawal in a subsequent year and request the MGCRB to reinstate its wage index reclassification for the remaining fiscal year(s) of the 3-year period.

(ii) A hospital may apply for reclassification for purposes of the wage index to a different area (that is, an area different from the one to which it was originally reclassified for the 3-year period). If the application is approved, the reclassification will be effective for 3 years. Once a 3-year reclassification becomes effective, a hospital may no longer cancel a withdrawal or termination of another 3-year reclassification, regardless of whether the withdrawal or termination request is made within 3 years from the date of the withdrawal or termination.

(iii) In a case in which a hospital with an existing 3-year wage index reclassification applies to be reclassified to another area, its existing 3-year reclassification will be terminated when a second 3-year wage index reclassification goes into effect for payments for discharges on or after the following October 1.

(c) Written request only. A request to withdraw an application or terminate an approved reclassification must be made in writing to the MGCRB by all hospitals that are party to the application or reclassification.

(d) Process for canceling a previous withdrawal or termination. A hospital may cancel a previous withdrawal or termination by submitting written notice of its intent to the MGCRB no later than the deadline for submitting reclassification applications for the following fiscal year, as specified in §412.256(a)(2).

(e) Appeal of the MGCRB's denial of a hospital's request for withdrawal. (1) A hospital may file an appeal of the MGCRB's denial of its request for withdrawal of an application to the Administrator. The appeal must be received within 15 days of the date of the notice of the denial.

(2) Within 20 days of receipt of the hospital's request for appeal, the Administrator affirms or reverses the denial.

[56 FR 25489, June 4, 1991, as amended at 56 FR 43241, Aug. 30, 1991; 57 FR 39826, Sept. 1, 1992; 66 FR 39935, Aug. 1, 2001; 67 FR 50113, Aug. 1, 2002]