Rural hospitals alarmed at Graham-Cassidy bill - Entrepreneur Generations

"Leaders of cash-strapped rural hospitals worry that the latest proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act could destroy them," Dave Barkholz reports for Modern Healthcare. Many rural hospitals are already on the ropes. "Of the nation's 1,160 rural hospitals, 41% are operating at a financial loss. Eighty-two have already closed since 2010. And one in three of the survivors is considered at risk of closing," Barkholz reports.

Maggie Elehwany, vice president of governmental affairs at the National Rural Health Association, said that rural hospitals would be hit especially hard by legislation that increases the uninsured, boosts deductibles for patients or threatens already shrinking Medicare payments.

The bill would end the Medicaid expansion brought by the ACA by 2020. Because rural areas have far higher rates of Medicaid patients, rural hospitals would be disproportionately hurt and many might have to close. The bill also doesn't address the federal cost-sharing subsidies that help insurers offer cheaper plans for people with low incomes. President Trump has threatened to withhold those payments, sparking concern--and withdrawal from rural markets--from many insurers.

Under the Graham-Cassidy bill, the individual insurance mandate would be repealed, and nearly $1.2 trillion in ACA subsidies would be distributed to states through block grants. "If state blocks grants end up cutting funding to healthcare, patients who can afford insurance may end up with higher deductibles, leaving hospitals struggling to collect payments," according to Megan Neuberger, Team Head of Healthcare in the Fitch U.S. Corporate Ratings group.

from The Rural Blog http://ift.tt/2jRddyo Rural hospitals alarmed at Graham-Cassidy bill - Entrepreneur Generations

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