PA Safety Net Admin, Author at Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania

Congressman Calls for Delay on DSH Cuts

Cuts in Medicare DSH and Medicaid DSH payments, scheduled to be take effect beginning in FY 2014, would be delayed for two years under a new bill proposed in Congress.
Under the DSH Reduction Relief Act of 2013, Affordable Care Act-mandated cuts in Medicare disproportionate share payments (Medicare DSH) and Medicaid disproportionate share payments (Medicaid DSH) would not begin until FY 2016, instead of in FY 2014, as the reform law requires.
The bill was proposed by Representative John Lewis (D-GA).
Read more about The DSH Reduction Relief Act in this article from Becker’s Hospital Review.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-05-13T09:36:10+00:00May 13th, 2013|Health care reform|Comments Off

Will Medicaid Coverage Mean Access?

With many states preparing to expand their Medicaid programs and enroll unprecedented numbers of new people, it is not clear whether Medicaid coverage will lead to access to care.
That concern arises in the wake of a survey that found that only 43 percent of physicians accept Medicaid patients. Other providers, moreover, may not be up to filling the gap: the same survey found that only 20 percent of physician assistants and nurse practitioners serve Medicaid patients.
Thus, while more people than ever will have health insurance once the Medicaid expansion component of the Affordable Care Act takes effect, it is not clear whether those who find themselves newly insured will have reasonable access to medical services.
While the Affordable Care Act attempts to anticipate this challenge by raising the traditionally low fees that Medicare pays primary care physicians to the same level as those paid by Medicare for the next two years, it is not clear whether this new policy is working and if will have a lasting impact after the two-year experiment ends.
This could become a major challenge for Pennsylvania’s safety-net hospitals if the state eventually chooses to expand its Medicaid program. To date, the state has chosen not to expand the program but has been discussing the possibility of doing so with federal officials. The Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania (SNAP) supports Medicaid expansion in the state.
Read more about the survey and its implications in this Healthcare Finance News report .

PA Safety Net Admin2013-05-08T06:00:00+00:00May 8th, 2013|Pennsylvania Medicaid policy, Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania|Comments Off

DPW Establishes Exceptions to Monthly Prescription Limit

Since January of last year, Pennsylvania’s Medical Assistance program has limited categorically needy adult recipients over the age of 21 to six prescriptions a month.
While Medical Assistance has established a process for seeking exceptions to this limit, the Department of Public Welfare has now published a new MA Bulletin that lists exceptions that will automatically be granted.
Find that list in this MA Bulletin.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-05-03T06:00:51+00:00May 3rd, 2013|Medical Assistance Bulletin, Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off

DPW Questions Financial Underpinnings of Medicaid Expansion

In a letter to the leaders of the two legislative appropriations committees, Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Acting Secretary Beverly Mackereth has questioned whether the state can rely on the continued availability of certain key parts of funding Medicaid expansion in the commonwealth.
In particular, Secretary Mackereth questioned whether Pennsylvania would be able to continue levying its gross receipts tax on managed care organizations, which is expected to produce $1.5 billion in revenue to use for Medicaid over the next seven years.
Pennsylvania also has a number of potential Medicaid deferrals and allowances under consideration by the federal government that could result in the state receiving less federal Medicaid matching money.
Read Secretary Mackereth’s letter to legislative leaders, and a press release that accompanies that letter, here on the web site of PR Newswire.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-05-02T06:00:58+00:00May 2nd, 2013|Health care reform, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off

Medicaid Expansion Would Save PA Money, Report Says

Expanding Pennsylvania’s Medicaid program as provided for under the Affordable Care Act would increase federal spending in the state by $3.2 billion, save the state $220 million a year, and increase tax revenue another $215 million a year, according to a new analysis by the state’s Independent Fiscal Office.
The projected savings and spending cover the years 2016 through 2021.
The Independent Fiscal Office was created in 2010 to develop revenue projections and analyze fiscal, economic, and budget issues.
Find links to the report, a press release, and a fact sheet here , on the Independent Fiscal Office’s web site.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-30T09:18:45+00:00April 30th, 2013|Health care reform, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off

Medicaid Expansion Would Boost PA’s Economy and Save Money, New Report Says

Expanding Medicaid eligibility as envisioned in the Affordable Care Act would boost the state’s economy and save state government money, according to a new study.
In the report “Economic and Fiscal Impact of Medicaid Expansion in Pennsylvania,” the Pennsylvania Economy League and the PA Health Funders Collaborative concluded that Medicaid expansion in the state would generate $4.4 billion in state government savings, bring $32 billion of new federal government money into the state’s economy, support as many as 40,000 new jobs and $3.6 billion in new tax revenue, and have a positive fiscal impact of more than $5 billion.
The Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania supports Medicaid expansion in the state.
Read the entire report here, on the web site of the Pennsylvania Economy League.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-26T06:00:07+00:00April 26th, 2013|Health care reform, Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Safety-Net Association of Pennsylvania|Comments Off

Nurses Seek Nurse-to-Patient Staffing Ratio Law

Pennsylvania’s nurses have rallied in Harrisburg for legislation to establish legal guidelines for nurse-to-patient staffing ratios in the state.
The proposal supported by the Pennsylvania State Nurses Association calls for individual hospitals to establish their own guidelines on a unit-by-unit basis.
The most recent nurse staffing bill in the Pennsylvania General Assembly was referred to the House Committee on Health in the fall of 2011.
Read more about the nurses’ rally in Harrisburg and their objectives in this Central Penn Business Journal article.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-25T06:00:44+00:00April 25th, 2013|Uncategorized|Comments Off

DPW Updates Fee Schedule

The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) has updated its Medical Assistance fee-for-service fee schedule for a variety of physician services, podiatrist services, surgical services, and more.
See a complete list of changes here , in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-23T06:00:49+00:00April 23rd, 2013|Pennsylvania Bulletin, Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off

DPW Publishes DSH Notice

The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare has published a notice detailing its final allocations for FY 2013 for Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments (Medicaid DSH) for OB/neonatal intensive care services, trauma services, burn centers, academic medical centers, critical access hospitals, and selected other limited groups of providers.
Read the Pennsylvania Bulletin notice here .

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-16T06:00:25+00:00April 16th, 2013|Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off

IRS Issues Guidelines for Community Health Assessments

The Internal Revenue Service has issued a proposed rule governing how non-profit hospitals will conduct future community health assessments.
Such assessments are required of non-profit hospitals under the Affordable Care Act.
The new regulation also includes guidelines for hospital billing practices when serving low-income patients.
To learn more about the new regulation, find a copy of the regulation itself and an IRS fact sheet here , on the web site of the U.S. Treasury Department.

PA Safety Net Admin2013-04-12T06:00:21+00:00April 12th, 2013|Health care reform|Comments Off

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