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HEADLINE ADVOCACY NEWS

LI Hospitals Endure Endless Medicaid Cuts

Long Island’s hospitals have absorbed Medicaid reimbursement cuts and taxes  seven times since April 2008 and the 2010 – 2011 state budget is still technically unfinished as we head into the middle of summer.

Yet, despite the lack of a truly legislated budget, Medicaid cuts were included in one of Governor Paterson’s numerous emergency spending bills.  That extender bill, enacted in early June, imposed an additional $21 million in Long Island hospital Medicaid cuts, mainly through indigent care fund reductions, elimination of the Medicaid trend factor (a previously legislated payment adjustment tied to inflation), and cuts to payments for preventable readmissions.

The cumulative losses to the hospitals in this region, since 2008, now register in the billions.

Long Island’s hospital administrators say these cuts and this continuing budget uncertainty make the daily operation of a hospital more difficult. These frequent disruptions in revenue affect staffing and services.

"In recent years, hospitals have been forced to reduce services, close units and significantly decrease health screenings, educational programs, and related services that communities rely upon,” said Dahill. “Little by little, Albany has eroded the foundation of hospital-based health care services on Long Island."

Hospital administrators remain very concerned about the imposition of any gross receipts tax (GRT) on inpatient services and the fate of FMAP money (Federal Medical Assistant Percentage) that hangs in limbo in Washington DC.  FMAP money expires December 31, 2010, yet New York State has factored an extension of this money into its 2010 – 2011 budget.  The legislature and governor are at odds concerning the development of a contingency plan should the FMAP money not be forthcoming.  The FMAP money is worth about $2 billion to New York State and without it the state’s budget hole will grow that much wider.

LI Hospitals Cut Even More

State Budget Amendments Not All Hospital Friendly

(Hauppauge, NY ... February 17, 2010) Long Island’s hospitals could see even steeper Medicaid cuts than originally proposed in the Executive Budget, thanks to budget amendments set forth last week bythe governor. Cuts to Long Island hospitals total nearly $46 million, an increase of about $6 million, and spare no hospital from reductions.

In his 21-day budget amendments, the governor backed off his proposal to redirect Indirect Medical Education and indigent care dollars, a proposal that would have benefitted a few hospitals on Long Island but hurt most. Under the amended proposal, the net effect is negative for all Long Island hospitals. What remains from the governor’s original budget proposal is an increase in the gross receipts tax (GRT) on inpatient services, elimination of the Medicaid trend factor, a $186 million cut to indigent care, and a proposed reimbursement cut to hospitals with high rates of readmission.

“The GRT was originally instituted as a temporary assessment. Yet, it is plainly a tax and now the governor seeks to make it permanent. This move alone will decimate Long Island’s hospitals, as it represents nearly half of the proposed Medicaid cuts,” said Kevin Dahill, president/CEO of the Nassau-Suffolk Hospital Council (NSHC), the association that represents Long Island’s hospitals.

Long Island’s hospital administrators say these cuts – the seventh to occur in just two years – make the daily operation of a hospital difficult and dangerous. These frequent disruptions in revenue affect staffing and services. Since April 2008, Long Island’s hospitals have endured $180 million in Medicaid cuts, according to the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS).

“In recent years, we’ve seen some maternity units eliminated, hundreds of hospital employees laid off, and a significant decrease in health screenings, educational programs, and related services that communities rely upon,” said Dahill. “Little by little, Albany has eroded the foundation of hospital-based health care services on Long Island.”

LI Legislators/Hospital Leaders Face Daunting Budget Deficit - March 17, 2010

Massive state budget cuts and imperiled national reform efforts threaten progress on LI - January 28, 2010

NSHC Celebrates 50 Years of Hospital Care on Long Island

Healthy Long Island Public Information Campaign

Message from the CEO

Message from Nassau Suffolk Hospital Council's CEO, Kevin Dahill:

"The not-for-profit and public hospitals that comprise the Nassau Suffolk Hospital Council (NSHC) work every day to provide the best and most appropriate health care to any one who requires it. This requires diligence in the areas of clinical care, quality assurance, facility maintenance, and professional training and education."