Hospital Discharge Rights: What You Need to Know Before Leaving
Being discharged from a hospital involves important rights that protect your health and safety. Understanding these rights ensures you leave the hospital properly prepared and not before you're ready.
Your Right to a Safe Discharge
Hospitals must ensure that discharge is safe and appropriate:
- You should not be discharged until you're medically stable
- Your discharge plan should address your ongoing care needs
- You should receive clear discharge instructions
- Necessary follow-up care should be arranged before you leave
What You Should Receive at Discharge
- Discharge summary: A written summary of your hospital stay, diagnosis, and treatment
- Medication list: Complete list of medications with dosages, frequency, and special instructions
- Follow-up appointments: Scheduled visits with your doctors
- Warning signs: Symptoms that should prompt you to seek immediate care
- Activity restrictions: Limitations on physical activity, driving, or work
- Dietary instructions: Any changes to your diet
- Wound care instructions: How to care for surgical incisions or other wounds
- Contact information: Who to call with questions after discharge
Medicare Discharge Rights
If you're a Medicare beneficiary, you have additional specific rights:
Important Message from Medicare (IM)
- You must receive this notice within two days of admission
- It explains your right to receive all necessary hospital services
- It tells you your right to appeal a discharge decision
Right to Appeal
- If you think you're being discharged too soon, you can appeal
- Contact your Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) before your planned discharge
- Your appeal is reviewed within one day
- You are not responsible for hospital charges during the appeal review
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE to find your QIO
If You Believe You're Being Discharged Too Early
- Tell your doctor you don't feel ready for discharge and explain why
- Ask to speak with the hospital's patient advocate
- Request a care conference with your treatment team
- For Medicare patients, exercise your appeal rights through the QIO
- Document your concerns in writing
Discharge Planning
Good discharge planning should begin at admission and include:
- Assessment of your home environment and support system
- Arrangements for home health services if needed
- Equipment needs (walker, wheelchair, oxygen, etc.)
- Prescription medications filled or ordered
- Transportation home arranged
- Referrals to skilled nursing facilities or rehabilitation if needed
Tips for a Smooth Discharge
- Ask about your discharge plan early in your stay
- Have a family member or advocate present during discharge teaching
- Ask questions about anything you don't understand
- Don't leave until you're confident you understand your care plan
- Confirm that prescriptions have been sent to your pharmacy
Data sourced from CMS. Visit Medicare Care Compare or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical or legal advice.
Important
This article explains how hospital quality data works and is for general information only. It is not medical advice and must not be used to decide whether to seek, delay or refuse care — that is a decision for you and a clinician who knows your situation.
CMS quality measures describe care delivered during earlier reporting periods and are refreshed roughly quarterly. A hospital's staffing, services and performance can change well before the published numbers do.
hospiguide.org is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to CMS, Medicare, or any U.S. government agency, and publishes no ratings of its own.
Before acting on anything here, verify current details at Medicare.gov Care Compare or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048.
HospiGuide.org Editorial Team
Our editorial team explains U.S. hospital quality data using official CMS datasets and government publications. We are not medical professionals, we do not recommend hospitals, and we accept no payment for coverage. Every factual claim is checked against a CMS or federal source. Read our editorial policy.
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