The change has been long sought by patient-safety proponents who argue that current reimbursement practices do not discourage avoidable complications. Experts said private health insurers were likely to follow Medicare's lead.
The federal health program specified eight medical errors and preventable conditions that it will no longer cover. They range from the removal of surgical sponges or instruments accidentally left in the body - 46 cases in the eight-county region last year, according to an Inquirer analysis of billing records - to the treatment of urinary-tract infections linked to catheters - contracted by 362 patients locally.
"Up until now the only strong disincentive to medical errors has been the malpractice system, which is grossly inefficient, costly and often inaccurate," said Robert I. Field, chairman of the health policy and public health department at the University of the Sciences.
He called the change "the most direct and aggressive initiative" aimed at the problem since the Institute of Medicine's groundbreaking 1999 report estimated that mistakes killed 98,000 patients a year.
Medicare is by far the biggest health-care payer, covering 42 million seniors and disabled people nationwide.
"Withholding Medicare reimbursement is certainly a strong incentive to get everybody on the same quality-improvement page," said Ron Czajkowski, a spokesman for the New Jersey Hospital Association.
Statewide, Medicare accounted for nearly $5 billion, or 34 percent of all New Jersey hospital revenue last year. Pennsylvania hospitals got $10.4 billion, or 35 percent, of revenue from the program.
In the Philadelphia region, many hospitals rely on Medicare for 40 percent or more of their revenue.
The actual impact of the change on hospital revenue is not yet clear.
