Twenty New Jersey hospitals are expected to receive an extra $33 million from federal officials to help cover the costs of treating Medicare patients, Democratic Sens. Robert Menendez and Cory Booker announced Wednesday.
The funds are based on what physicians would get paid in rural areas, and New Jersey otherwise would not qualify because it is one of only three states in the nation without areas designated as rural under Medicare's wage payment policy, according to NJ Advance Media.
The extra funds reimburse the state's hospitals for the actual costs of treating Medicare patients, NJ Advance Media notes.
The funds for New Jersey were set to expire on Sept. 30, 2016, but will now be extended for an additional year to Sept. 30, 2017.
"This extension of the Medicare imputed floor wage index is a major victory for New Jersey's hospitals, and one of the most important healthcare policy provisions I am proud to fight for in Washington," Sen. Booker said in a prepared statement. "The imputed rural floor provides not only much-needed equity in Medicare reimbursements for New Jersey's affected hospitals, but it allows our state to continue to provide high quality healthcare to our residents. I am proud to stand with the entire New Jersey delegation to continue to support this important policy until we can implement a permanent solution."
New Jersey hospitals expected to benefit are:
- Cape Regional Medical Center (Cape May Court House) $
- Capital Health Medical Center - Hopewell Cooper (Pennington)
- University Hospital (Newark)
- Hackettstown (N.J.) Medical Center
- Hunterdon Medical Center (Raritan)
- Inspira Medical Center - Elmer
- Inspira Medical Center - Vineland
- Inspira Medical Center - Woodbury
- Kennedy University Hospital (Cherry Hill)
- Lourdes Medical Center of Burlington County (Willingboro)
- Memorial Hospital of Salem County, Inc. (Woodstown)
- Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center (Camden)
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital - Hamilton
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital - Rahway
- Robert Wood .Johnson University Hospital - Somerset
- St. Francis Medical Center (Trenton)
- St. Luke's Warren Hospital (Phillipsburg)
- Trinitas Regional Medical Center (Elizabeth)
- Virtua Hospital (Voorhees)
- Virtua Memorial Hospital (Mt. Holly)
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