Four major hospital lobbying groups wrote a letter to senators yesterday, urging Congress to pass legislation that would delay cuts to disproportionate share hospital payments.
The American Hospital Association, Association of American Medical Colleges, Catholic Health Association and Federation of American Hospitals penned the letter to senators. Last month, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) introduced the DSH Relief Act of 2013, a companion bill to Rep. John Lewis' (D-Ga.) bill from earlier this year. If signed, DSH payment cuts would be delayed two years to fiscal year 2016.
Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Medicare and Medicaid DSH payments will be reduced by $64 billion over the next six years.
"The Supreme Court's decision on Medicaid expansion and subsequent uncertainty regarding the uptake in insurance coverage have reduced the estimate of those who will receive healthcare coverage to 25 million individuals, rather than the initial projection of 32 million covered lives," the groups wrote. "As a result, hospitals treating disproportionate shares of these patients will see their payments reduced in ways unintended by policymakers."
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