Hospitals see major drop in charity care, September 24, 2014, The Tennessean: “The number of uninsured patients admitted to hospitals has dropped markedly this year, reducing charity care and bad debt cases, particularly in states that have expanded Medicaid coverage under the new federal health care law, a government report released Wednesday found. The report from the Department of Health and Human Services said hospitals in states that have taken advantage of new Medicaid eligibility levels have seen uninsured admissions fall by about 30 percent. The report estimated that the cost of uncompensated hospital care will be $5.7 billion lower in 2014…”
Affordable Care Act reduces costs for hospitals, report says, By Robert Pear, September 24, 2014, New York Times: “The Obama administration increased the pressure on states to expand Medicaid on Wednesday, citing new evidence that hospitals reap financial benefits and gain more paying customers when states broaden eligibility. In states that have expanded Medicaid, the White House said, hospitals are seeing substantial reductions in ‘uncompensated care’ as more patients have Medicaid coverage and fewer are uninsured…”
Report: Hospitals in Medicaid-expansion states performing well, By Chelsea Keenan, September 8, 2014, Cedar Rapids Gazette: “Hospitals in states that expanded Medicaid are seeing higher revenues and a reduction in uninsured patients, according to a new report by PwC’s Health Research Institute. The report analyzed financial data from the country’s five largest for-profit health systems, which represent 538 hospitals in 35 states. ‘There were lots of debates in (Washington) D.C. around these issues,’ said Gary Jacobs, a managing director at PWC. ‘There were lots of promises and good intentions. But the jury was still out on how it would shape up.’ The growth in the 26 Medicaid expansion states and Washington, D.C., starkly contrasts the experience in the 24 states that did not expand the program, the report found…”
Hospital officials frustrated with financial losses since state did not expand Medicaid, By Shannon Muchmore, September 8, 2014, Tulsa World: “Tulsa hospital executives are frustrated at losing out on reimbursements because of what they say are purely political decisions. Hospitals in Oklahoma are projected to lose more than $4 billion in reimbursements between 2013-22 because the state chose not to expand Medicaid, according to a recent report by the Urban Institute…”
State’s low Medicaid payments pinch doctor practices in low-income areas, By Guy Boulton, July 19, 2014, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “Mohammad Qasim Khan, a primary care physician who oversees a private practice in a low-income neighborhood, well knows the discrepancy between what private insurance pays for his services and what the state’s Medicaid program pays. Khan, who works with another physician and three nurse practitioners at the Family Medical Clinic, 5434 W. Capitol Drive, estimates that the program’s payment rates are half — and in some cases, less than half — those of private insurance…”
U.S. hospitals get lift from surge in Medicaid sign-ups, By Susan Kelly, August 1, 2014, Philadelphia Inquirer: “U.S. hospitals are getting a stronger-than-expected benefit from a new influx of low-income patients whose bills are paid by the government’s Medicaid program, raising their profit forecasts as a result. The growing numbers of Medicaid patients helped hospital operator HCA Holdings Inc, the largest for-profit chain, post stronger earnings in the second quarter than initially forecast…”
CDC: Many kids with Medicaid use ER as doctor’s office, By Steven Reinberg, July 29, 2014, Lafayette Journal and Courier: “Children covered by Medicaid, the publicly funded insurance program for the poor, visit the emergency room for medical care far more often than uninsured or privately insured youngsters, a U.S. survey finds. And kids with Medicaid were more likely than those with private insurance to visit for a reason other than a serious medical problem, according to the 2012 survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention…”
