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State House
Now Reviewing FY 2009 Medicaid Budget
Hospitals
Must Urge the State House to Protect Coverage &
Address Issues in the Hospital Quality Assurance
Assessment Program
The State House
Appropriations Subcommittee on Community Health
is now developing its version of the fiscal year
(FY) 2009 Michigan Department of Community
Health (MDCH) budget. The budget was initiated
by the governor and was recently modified by the
state Senate.
Per the direction of the
MHA Board of Trustees, the MHA and member
hospitals are focused on three primary concerns
regarding the Medicaid budget negotiations:
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The restoration
of Medicaid coverage for 19- and
20-year-olds that was stripped in the
Senate-passed version of the budget. The
elimination of this patient coverage could
impact the hospital community by more than
$9 million.
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Decreasing the
excessive amount — $126 million — the state
proposes to retain from the hospital Quality
Assurance Assessment Program (QAAP) provider
tax. The MHA is working to establish a
reduced, but reasonable, allocation to the
state's general fund and is calling for the
establishment of a fixed rate to be retained
by the state in future years.
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Elimination of the use of earmarks financed by the hospital QAAP in the FY 2009 MDCH budget. The use of earmarks would result in a majority of Michigan hospitals paying more in taxes than they would receive through the distribution process.
The Hospital Community Response
The MHA is currently
working with state House leaders to restore
patient eligibility and coverage to all Medicaid
patients, protect Medicaid provider rates and
reduce the state's retention from the hospital
provider tax. For our advocacy efforts to
succeed, state lawmakers need to hear from you,
too!
Please contact your
state representative to deliver these simple
messages:
-
Maintain current
hospital funding and programs to protect
affordable health care for all
Michigan residents.
-
Restore the
Medicaid eligibility and coverage cuts for
the state's vulnerable populations.
-
Reduce the
state's share of the hospital QAAP and urge
the establishment of a fixed rate governing
future state gainsharing.
-
Eliminate the
use of earmarks financed by the hospital
QAAP.
The following tools will
assist you in contacting your state
representative:
The House subcommittee
is expected to complete action on its version of
the MDCH budget by May 15.
To locate your state
representative, go to our
Legislative Action Center and select My
Elected Officials. For instructions on how to
use the action center,
click here.
If you have
any questions regarding this Action Alert,
please contact
David Finkbeiner at the MHA at (517)
703-8601. | 
