Here are four things to know:
1. The decision affects about 200 Illinois hospitals that receive Medicaid funding as part of the state’s hospital assessment program. The program was set to expire at the end of June. Hospitals, particularly safety-net hospitals that see a high proportion of Medicaid patients, had been concerned about whether they could remain financially viable if the plan wasn’t approved by July, according to the report.
2. The plan funnels about $3.5 billion in Medicaid funding to hospitals in the state. Illinois’ hospital assessment program stipulates that hospitals financially contribute to a fund. After the fund receives a federal match, hospitals receive Medicaid funding through a complex formula, according to the report.
3. The formula, though, is more than 10 years old, and healthcare officials, including the Illinois Health and Hospital Association, worked to revise it as part of a program redesign.
4. A spokesperson with the Illinois Health and Hospital Association told the Chicago Tribune the program starting next month is expected to provide Illinois hospitals with $200 million in new federal funding.
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