Florida lawmakers await financial information from some hospitals amid potential funding cuts

Florida House legislators have yet to receive requested financial disclosures from some hospitals, according to a Naples Daily News report.

Here are six things to know.

1. House members requested the financial information as they determine potential state hospital funding cuts.

2. However, only a portion of Florida hospitals have complied. As of Monday morning, 18 for-profit healthcare systems in the state, along with three of the state's nonprofit hospital systems, had not responded, according to the report. Additionally, four of the state's public systems had not responded.

3. The financial disclosures at this point included spending on lobbying and salaries, among other information, according to the report.

4. So far, public hospitals have reported spending an average of $253,695 on lobbying last year, compared to nearly $104,000 for nonprofits and more than $14,100 for for-profits, reports Naples Daily News.

5. Rep. Carlos Trujillo, R-Miami, chairman of the House appropriations committee, said in the report the financial disclosures would "absolutely influence the cuts this year."

6. At present, the House is proposing to cut state hospital funding by $622 million, and the Senate is proposing a $258 million cut, according to the report. Last week, Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott and the federal government announced an agreement for a $1.5 billion annual commitment for Florida's Low Income Pool program to aid the state's safety-net hospitals. However, the state's House and the Senate have not included the full amount into their budgets, according to the report.

For more on this story, read Alexandra Glorioso's full report here.

 

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