As Congress negotiates reimbursement rates, Rick Pollack, president and CEO of the American Hospital Association (AHA), is urging lawmakers to halt any further payment cuts that could compromise patient care and hospital services nationwide. 

“Last week Congress again voted to push back its deadline for funding the federal government for fiscal year 2024 by adopting another continuing resolution that extends current funding levels through the beginning of March,” wrote Pollack in a blog post. “As we have been sharing with you through our various communications channels, a number of important issues affecting hospitals and health systems are being considered as part of this package. These include preserving the moratorium on Medicaid disproportionate share hospital cuts and staving off harmful so-called site-neutral payment policies that don’t account for the differences in the care hospitals provide 24/7.”

Pollack cited recent data showing that for Medicare alone, hospitals were reimbursed at a rate of only 82 cents for every dollar spent in 2022, resulting in approximately $100 billion in underpayments. This is compounded by rising costs and ongoing cybersecurity threats.

AHA was slated to host a “special advocacy update” virtual session with members on January 31.

"The upside to Congress’ repeatedly kicking the can down the road is we now have several more weeks to keep telling the hospital story and educating lawmakers," said Pollack.

Pollack’s full remarks can be read at the link below.