Here are five things to know about the proposal and the reaction to it.
1. The proposal, which would be an amendment to House Bill 1102, is designed to help the state’s budget shortfall.
2. The shortfall is a result of a federal district court ruling issued in March that voided a 2017 federal rule. The ruling essentially determined hospitals serving a large number of Medicaid and uninsured patients were owed more uncompensated care funding from the state, Concord Monitor reports. Due to the ruling, the state must set aside $38 million that was not previously anticipated in the budget process.
3. New Hampshire hospitals paid $243 million in Medicaid enhancement taxes in April, according to a tweet from the New Hampshire Hospital Association. According to the Concord Monitor, state representatives said hospitals paid the money with the expectation they would receive more money back from the state.
4. According to the report, Mr. Morse anticipates the March ruling will ultimately be overturned and believes his proposal will provide more time for the litigation to be settled.
“I believe the hospitals are wrong in their position,” he said, according to the Concord Monitor. “Be that as it may, the legal answer to that will play itself out. However, as the state, I believe we must protect ourselves, and the hospitals quite honestly, when it comes to healthcare.”
5. New Hampshire hospitals oppose Mr. Morse’s proposal. The tweet from the NHA stated: “After paying $243 million in #Medicaid enhancement taxes, #NHHospitals shouldn’t be expected to solve the state’s budget problem on the backs of their patients.”
Read the full report here.
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