Wyo. Spends More Than Half Of Its Fund To Subsidize Hospitals In Three Months
State officials set up the $2 million fund in July to help hospitals treating uninsured patients after the state opted not to accept the health law's Medicaid expansion. Also, in Virginia, hospitals are concerned about the legislature's refusal to expand Medicaid.
The Associated Press:
Wyoming Pays Out Millions To Subsidize Hospitals
Wyoming has burned through more than half of a fund it created earlier this year to reimburse hospitals to cover the cost of treating uninsured patients after lawmakers [rejected] calls to expand the federal Medicaid program. The Wyoming Department of Health says the state has paid $1.3 million to 18 hospitals under the state's new subsidy program since July. The state allocated $2 million for the program. (Neary, 9/22)
Modern Healthcare:
Virginia Hospitals Consider Options Without Medicaid Expansion
Some Virginia hospitals are eyeing consolidation as they struggle to stay afloat financially in the face of continued Republican opposition to Medicaid expansion and reduced Medicare rates. ... Last week, the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association launched a multimedia campaign to highlight the key role of hospitals in the state's economy, the financial struggles its members are facing, and the need for legislative relief. The association reported that one-third of the state's acute-care hospitals had negative operating margins in 2013, the last year for which data are available. In rural Virginia, 17 of 37 hospitals operated in the red. Hospitals provided $627 million in free or discounted care in 2013, up 57% since 2008. (Dickson, 9/21)
