Disproportionate impact: Supreme Court narrows disproportionate share hospital reimbursement to Supplemental Security Income cash recipients

Disproportionate impact: Supreme Court narrows disproportionate share hospital reimbursement to Supplemental Security Income cash recipients 
The National Law Review; by Vinay Kohli, Matthew J. Westbrook, D. Austin Rettew; 5/23/25 
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a significant ruling affecting hospitals that serve low-income Medicare beneficiaries, narrowing the interpretation of the Disproportionate Share Hospital (“DSH”) payment formula. In Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Kennedy, the Court determined that only Medicare patients who were eligible to receive a cash Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) payment during the month of their hospitalization may be included in the calculation for additional DSH reimbursement. This decision represents a setback for more than 200 hospitals that had advocated for a broader, more inclusive definition of SSI entitlement, potentially reducing the financial support available for treating Medicare’s poorest patients.