CMS Pub. 100-04, ch. 3, § 140.1.7

If an IRF hospital (or a hospital that has an IRF unit) undergoes a change of ownership or

leasing, as defined in 42 CFR §489.18, the IRF hospital (or IRF unit of a hospital) retains

its excluded status and will continue to be paid under the IRF PPS before and after the

change of ownership or leasing if the new owner(s) of the IRF hospital (or the hospital

with an IRF unit) accept assignment of the previous owners’ Medicare provider agreement

and the IRF continues to meet all of the requirements for payment under the IRF PPS.

Note that an IRF’s payment status under the IRF PPS is a Medicare classification status,

which cannot be separated from its host hospital and therefore cannot be purchased

outside of the purchase of its host hospital.

If the new owner(s) do not accept assignment of the previous owners’ Medicare provider

agreement, the IRF is considered to be voluntarily terminated and the new owner(s) may

re-apply to the Medicare program to operate a new IRF, under the requirements for new

IRFs in §140.1.4 above.

If, after the change of ownership or leasing, the IRF does not continue to meet all of the

requirements for payment under the IRF PPS, then the IRF loses its excluded status and

will be paid instead under the IPPS.