Of the roughly $1 billion Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) proposed cutting from the state's healthcare budget as part of his annual 2017-18 budget, nine Florida nonprofit hospitals and one public hospital could see a combined total of $220 million in funding cuts, according to the News-Press.
Gov. Scott recommended cutting additional funding to nonprofit hospitals that do not meet threshold requirements for charity care, according to the article. The cuts stem from a report that found for-profit hospitals provided about 67 percent charity care in 2015, compared to 60 percent spent on charity care by nonprofit hospitals.
"The governor expects all hospitals, especially not-for-profit hospitals, to meet the average for-profit hospital charitable purpose threshold of 67.1 percent in order to continue receiving add-on dollars from the state," a government spokesperson told the News-Press.
Hospitals that face some of the largest cuts include Orlando-based Florida Hospital ($49.9 million in spending cuts), Orlando Health ($37.9 million), Fort Myers-based Lee Memorial Hospital ($35 million), Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare ($7.6 million), Fort Pierce-based Lawnwood Regional Medical Center ($5.9 million) and Naples-based NCH Baker Hospital Downtown ($5 million).