Report: Cheaper for Maine to Pay Hospital Debt With Bonds

To pay off its $484 million Medicaid debt to its 39 hospitals, Maine would benefit from lower-interest revenue bonds rather than rely on an upfront payment from the state’s outsourced liquor sales vendor, according to a nonpartisan legislative office cited in a report by the Bangor Daily News.

A decade ago, Maine contracted an outside vendor to manage its liquor sales and keep a portion of the revenue. A proposal offered by Democratic Senate Leader Seth Goodall would renegotiate the contract to require the liquor vendor to pay $181 million of the debt, which would likely mean the state would lose out on an estimated $32 million in liquor revenue over the next decade in the newly negotiated contract.

A competing proposal by Republican Gov. Paul LePage would authorize the state to issue revenue bonds to pay its hospital bills, allowing it to borrow money cheaper and retain an estimated total of about $384.8 million over the next decade, according to the report.

Report: Cheaper for Maine to Pay Hospital Debt With Bonds

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