H.R. 1775 — Second Chances for Rural Hospitals Act

This section expands the definition of a rural emergency hospital (REH) under the Medicare program—facilities that provide emergency department and limited outpatient services in rural areas with enhanced payments—to include certain facilities that ceased operations between January 1, 2014, and December 26, 2020, specifically former critical access hospitals or rural subsection (d) hospitals (i.e., Medicare acute care hospitals paid under the inpatient prospective payment system). (1) It exempts such facilities from REH provider enrollment, action plan, and minimum distance requirements. (2) It excludes such facilities from the payment increase under Medicare's REH outpatient payment rules if located less than 35 miles from the nearest hospital, critical access hospital, or REH, and from other proximity-based adjustments if less than 10 miles away. The changes apply beginning January 1, 2027.