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According to research published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association, many Americans like the idea of receiving hospital-level care at home, believing they would recover from their ills faster and without safety risks. As COVID-19 packed hospitals across the country, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services temporarily authorized at-home care under a waiver that Congress extended through the end of this year. The extension included a requirement that CMS study the quality of at-home care. Congress is considering whether to approve reimbursements for hospital-at-home care over the long haul. In all, 322 hospitals in 37 states are approved to provide at-home care. For the study, researchers surveyed patient preferences among 1,100 participants in their university’s online Understanding America Study. In all, 47% called hospital-at-home care an acceptable alternative to inpatient care. Fewer than one in five had a negative view of it, while 36% were neutral. In addition, 56% of respondents agreed that people recover faster at home than in the hospital and 21% strongly agreed. Acceptability of at-home care was consistent across economic groups, health status, insurance coverage, prior hospitalizations or use of telehealth services, the study found.