Not entirely correct. Hospitals have to treat anyone with a medical emergency. After that, there are categories of hospitals. A hospital where I live recently had it’s designation changed to Critical Access Hospital, or Critical Care Hospital. Not sure which, but it is only required to treat Medicare and I think Medicaid patients for a certain period of time, then the patients are transferred to another category of hospital.
Here, after a certain number of days, the local hospital transfers some patients to a regional hospital. And it was generally believed the move was made to avoid having all the beds filled with older, Medicare patients.
Much of this is state regulated and is not the same nationwide, but doctors can chose what type patients to accept as regular patients, and hospitals have some flexibility after required emergency treatment and a certain period of further care.
What you say is consistent with what I’ve read also and we’ve had similar publicity regarding hospital classifications in our area. What I said stands: Hospitals can not refuse to admit these categories of patients when in medical need. They don’t, of course, have to provide room and board and medical care permanently.