In a Feb. 23 letter to CMS, 14 senators called for a four-year extension of the Low Wage Index Hospital Policy, which helps rural hospitals compete for and retain high-quality staff by increasing payments to hospitals with lower overall wages.
Without action, Medicare payments to these hospitals are set to reduce after Sept. 30.
Extenuating circumstances, including the pandemic, have prevented the proper evaluation of the policy, according to the senators, who argue that extending the policy will allow CMS to better assess how it affects recruitment and retention at rural hospitals.
"Unfortunately, due to disruptions in the marketplace caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have not had the opportunity to see the true impact of the Low Wage Index Hospital Policy envisioned by CMS," the senators wrote. "Extending the Low Wage Index Hospital Policy for four additional years will allow hospitals and the agency to better understand the policy's true impact in a more normal environment."
Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., Mark Warner, D-Va., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., led the push for the policy extension.