IV 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 550 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the Centers 

for Medicare & Medicaid Services developing a mobility metric to guide 

providers in preventing mobility loss among hospitalized older adults. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 23, 2023 

Mrs. HOUCHIN (for herself, Ms. SEWELL, and Mr. PENCE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 

Commerce 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services developing a mobility metric to guide providers in preventing 

mobility loss among hospitalized older adults. 

Whereas more than 54 million Americans today are 65 years 

old or older, and because 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 years old each day, the overall number of older 

adults is expected to increase to more than 70 million by 

2030; 

Whereas, even before the onset of the COVID–19 pandemic, 

one-third of all hospitalized patients in the United States 

were at least 65 years old; 


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Whereas hospitalized older patients are mostly immobile during their admittance, spending less than 43 minutes each 

day walking even if they were ambulatory when admitted 

to the hospital; 

Whereas hospitalized older patients that do not receive sufficient mobility are at the greatest risk of experiencing 

negative health outcomes, such as sustaining muscle loss 

and weakness that could be long lasting, and even higher 

rates of death; 

Whereas restoring mobility is a goal for many, not necessarily 

all, hospitalized patients; 

Whereas more than one-third of adults aged 70 years old and 

older are discharged from a hospital with a major, new 

functional disability not present on admission to the hospital; 

Whereas one year after discharge from a hospital, fewer than 

one-third of older adults who developed a hospital-acquired functional disability have recovered to their prehospitalization function status; 

Whereas adults with a hospital-associated disability are three 

times more likely to be admitted to a nursing home; 

Whereas regular physical mobility during hospitalization is 

critical to preventing functional decline and frailty; 

Whereas mobility initiatives decrease hospital length of stay 

and overall cost of care, such as a 36-percent reduction 

in intensive care unit length of stay, a 33-percent reduction in overall hospital length of stay, a 46-percent reduction in the number of days on a ventilator, and a 30-percent reduction in overall hospital costs; 


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Whereas mobility programs in acute care settings improve the 

likelihood that patients are discharged directly to their 

homes and bypass a skilled nursing facility; 

Whereas hospitals, physicians, and nurses are committed to 

delivering the best care for patients, but there are not 

current standardized methods of assessing or tracking 

patient mobility within hospitals, nor are there standardized systems to measure adherence to individual hospital 

mobility protocols; 

Whereas current hospital reimbursement incentives designed 

to prevent patient ‘‘falls’’ unintentionally disincentive 

hospitals from mobilizing patients; 

Whereas prolonged periods of bed rest for older adults can 

cause loss of skeletal muscle, known as sarcopenia, reducing a person’s ability to carry out activities of daily living; and 

Whereas the American Geriatrics Society made a series of 

mobility recommendations developed by geriatric leaders, 

physicians, and clinicians, such as that the Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services should develop consensus 

on standard methods to assess mobility and that the Federal Government should prioritize translational research 

in mobility assessment, quality measurement, and implementation programs led by the Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality, the National Institutes of Health 

and National Institute on Aging, the Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention, and the Administration on 

Aging: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

3 Services should— 


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1 (1) promote the development of stakeholder 

2 consensus on a mobility assessment that is validated 

3 and clinically meaningful to providers and patients; 

4 (2) develop a mobility quality measure that in5 centives hospitals, staff, and providers to actively in6 tervene to prevent mobility loss among hospitalized 

7 patients; and 

8 (3) develop a mobility quality measure that fo9 cuses on the most effective improvements in patient 

10 outcomes and takes into consideration avoiding addi11 tional onerous burdens on providers. 

Æ 


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