Jersey Shore Hospital Meets with Congress

WASHINGTON (July 13)-Representatives of Pennsylvania's hospitals, including Jersey Shore Hospital, visited the nation's capital yesterday to deliver an important health care message to Pennsylvania members of Congress about the need to protect the health care safety net.

"Preserving our strong health care system requires that government adequately reimburse hospitals and physicians," said Carolyn F. Scanlan, president and CEO of The Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania, who co-sponsored with the American Hospital Association for yesterday's Capitol Hill meetings.

More than 30 of the state's hospital executives met with key staff of Senators Casey and Toomey and 8 members of Jersey Shore Hospital met with House members Glenn Thompson and Tom Marino.

"As part of the shared sacrifice to address growing health care costs and the federal deficit, Pennsylvania's hospitals are already facing $9 billion in reductions," Scanlan said, "and these cuts do not include additional cuts imposed by regulation and the 4.5% in Medicaid cuts just enacted in Pennsylvania's 2011-2012 budget."

"Hospitals have made great progress in controlling costs and improving quality, and many are investing significant resources in health information technology," Scanlan said. "But hospitals cannot continue to take these steps and absorb further cuts to federal programs, which already pay less than the cost of providing care."

"Formula-driven, arbitrary budget targets, which are among the proposals being discussed by Congress, would result in additional across-the-board cuts to health care," Scanlan said.
Scanlan also said that the hospital community opposes any efforts in Congress to reduce the use of provider assessments.

"The ability to use a provider assessment is critical to Pennsylvania's Medical Assistance modernization plan, which provides a level of payment predictability and stability," Scanlan said.

"While hospitals continue to experience the ongoing effects of the nation's still-weak economy, their doors remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to provide healing, health, and hope to every patient," Scanlan said.

Pennsylvania's hospitals annually care for 1.7 million inpatients and 38 million outpatients, evaluate 5.8 million injured and ill people in their emergency departments, and deliver more than 133,000 babies each year. In addition, hospitals contribute nearly $100 billion annually to the state's economy, and provide for nearly 600,000 jobs.

HAP is a statewide membership services organization that advocates for nearly 250 Pennsylvania acute and specialty care, primary care, subacute care, long-term care, home health, and hospice providers, as well as the patients and communities they serve. Additional information about HAP is available online at www.haponline.org