Only two months after the South Carolina government cut payments to Medicaid providers by 3 percent, state officials said Medicaid payments for some hospitals in the state will be cut by up to an additional 4 percent, according to an Island Packet report.
However, there are 24 hospitals exempted from the cuts, such as Hilton Head (S.C.) Hospital and Beaufort (S.C.) Memorial Hospital, because they proportionally serve more Medicaid patients.
Physician payments will be slashed by up to an additional 7 percent.
Hospital and physician associations disagree with this second round of Medicaid cuts as patients might have difficulty finding sufficient care if physicians and hospitals stop accepting Medicaid due to its low level of reimbursement.
Read The Island Packet's coverage on South Carolina Medicaid.
Related Articles on South Carolina Medicaid:
South Carolina Budget Board Approves $100M Bailout for State's HHS
South Carolina Senate OKs $125M in Cuts to Physicians, Hospitals
South Carolina Medicaid Director Proposes Delaying Payments to Managed Care Groups to Save $36M