In a new push for patient safety, Medicare will no longer allow hospitals to bill it (or patients) for extra-care costs involved in hospital errors. Medicare will cease paying for hospital errors that include catheter-caused urinary tract infections, injuries from falls and complications from leaving objects in the body after surgery.

Medicare estimates that this will save the government approximately $190 million over the next five years and hopes that the move will encourage safer hospital practices and more accountability on the part of hospital staff.