The Save Struggling Hospitals Act would permanently codify a Medicare payment policy designed to help hospitals in low-wage areas. Under current law, hospitals located in regions with below-average wage indexes receive a boost to their Medicare reimbursement rates, but this policy has relied on temporary administrative extensions. This bill would make that wage index adjustment permanent by amending the Social Security Act, ensuring hospitals in the lowest 25th percentile of wage areas receive increased payments going forward. The adjustment would be implemented in a budget-neutral manner, meaning any increases to lower-wage hospitals would be offset by adjustments elsewhere in the Medicare system, though protections are included to prevent hospitals in the lower 75th percentile from seeing payment cuts. The policy would apply to hospital discharges beginning October 1, 2019, and ongoing thereafter, providing financial stability for rural and other economically disadvantaged hospital systems.
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