What is the 3-day rule in hospitals? The 3-day rule in hospitals refers to Medicare requirement that patient must have 3-day inpatient hospital stay, not counting day of discharge and not including observation or emergency department time unless inpatient admission ordered, to qualify for Medicare coverage of skilled nursing facility care after hospital. Under Medicare, to have SNF stay covered under Part A, patient must have had qualifying inpatient hospital stay of at least 3 consecutive days, and need skilled nursing or therapy that is medically necessary, and enter SNF within 30 days of hospital discharge. The 3-day inpatient requirement has been controversial, as many patients kept under observation for days do not meet inpatient requirement and thus lose SNF coverage, leading to high out-of-pocket costs. During COVID public health emergency, waiver allowed coverage without 3-day stay. So 3-day rule is Medicare policy linking SNF coverage to 3-day inpatient hospital stay, affecting post-hospital rehabilitation coverage.
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