St. Luke's Hospital v. Secretary of Health and Human Services

BREYER, Circuit Judge.

Hospitals that provide Medicare services receive reimbursement from the Government in an amount determined by a private insurance company (called a “fiscal intermediary”) based upon the insurance company’s examination of a cost report that the hospital has given it. Should a hospital believe that an intermediary has made a mistake, it is entitled to ask a government body, called the Provider Reimbursement Review Board (PRRB), to review the intermediary’s decision. The legal issue before us concerns the proper interpretation of a statute that describes the Board’s powers…