Medicaid Inpatient Hospital Claims With Severe Malnutrition

Malnutrition can result from treatment of another condition, inadequate treatment or neglect, or general deterioration of a patient's health. Hospitals are allowed to bill for treatment of malnutrition on the basis of the severity of the condition (mild, moderate, or severe) and whether it affects patient care. Severe malnutrition is classified as a major complication or comorbidity (MCC). Adding an MCC to a claim can result in an increased payment by causing the claim to be coded in a higher diagnosis-related group. We will conduct statewide reviews to determine whether hospitals complied with Medicaid billing requirements when assigning severe malnutrition diagnosis codes to inpatient hospital claims.

Announced or Revised	Agency	Title	Component	Report Number(s)	Expected Issue Date (FY)
Revised	Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services	Medicaid Inpatient Hospital Claims With Severe Malnutrition	Office of Audit Services	W-00-22-31558	2025