What Are LTAC Hospitals

ALTHA occupies a unique place in the constellation of post-acute trade associations since its members represent diverse post-acute interests, beginning with LTAC hospitals but also ranging from home health companies, rehabilitation hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities.  ALTHA’s member companies represent the entire spectrum of post-acute care.

Long Term Acute Care (LTAC) hospitals serve a valuable role in the continuum of American healthcare by caring for patients who need longer than usual hospital stays, on average 25 days or more. (By comparison, the average length-of-stay in short-term hospitals is only 5-6 days.) There are approximately 400 LTAC hospitals across the country.

Access to these hospitals is crucial to a small but critically-ill population of patients. LTAC hospital patients are severely-ill, medically-complex patients with multiple comorbidities. Many of our patients are ventilator-dependent or suffer from other complex respiratory issues.

Congress created LTAC hospitals in 1983 to care for the small population of extremely ill patients for whom the cost of care is beyond the scope of most general hospitals. LTAC hospitals achieve high levels of medical recovery and help many patients return home.