Nazareth Hospital v. Secretary United States Department of Health & Human Services

OPINION

RENDELL, Circuit Judge:

Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), has appealed from the District Court’s judgment holding the Secretary’s Medicare regulation to be arbitrary and capricious, as well as a violation of the Equal Protection Clause. The dispute centers around certain Medicare reimbursement adjustments to appellees, two Pennsylvania hospitals. The District Court found there was no rational basis to exclude from such reimbursements patients covered by Pennsylvania’s General Assistance (“GA”) plan, while at the same time…