Community Hospital Update February 2011

The 2011-12 legislative session began in January 2011. MCCH submitted legislation consistent with removing serious inequities in the current payment system around the construct of the Health Safety Net Trust Fund, repair of obvious weaknesses in the Determination of Need program, and improving the ability of community hospitals to participate in policy discussions.

There is currently much attention being paid to the vital role that the community hospital system can and should play in mitigating the ever rising cost of health care in the Commonwealth. We expect a vigorous debate on the appropriateness of dramatic changes in the current payment system as we explore the use of global payments and ACO organizations. As the downturn in the economy continues to put pressure on every sector we must be vigilant to assure that short term actions do not further weaken the ability of community hospitals to be viable.

As of this posting the moral obligation bond program, which passed during the last legislative session, has not been implemented. The undercapitalization of the community hospital system remains a serious threat to community medicine forcing many hospitals to seek acquisition by for-profit companies or merger into larger organizations. It remains to be seen whether or not the advantages that community based medicine can bring to consumers, patients and employers will be compromised by such consolidation.

Community Hospital Update August 2010

The formal session of the 2009-2010 legislative session ended on July 31, 2010. MCCH was successful with several of the MCCH initiatives listed below being approved and signed into law. Senate 578, a study of anti-competitive behavior in the market place was initiated by the Division of Insurance and Attorney General early in 2010, and led to significant disclosures regarding the inappropriate use of market power to gain advantage in pricing with payers. This outcome received significant coverage in the press as a result of hearings conducted by both DOI and the Division of Health Care Finance and Policy. Regulatory actions were codified in Senate 2585 that have a bearing on minimizing certain behaviors deemed anti-competitive as a result of this review...

Read more of the Community Hospital Update, August 2010.