Save Struggling Hospitals Act
Sen. Warner Introduces Bipartisan Save Struggling Hospitals Act to Boost Medicare Pay
This bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process after being sent to the Senate Committee on Finance for review. It is actively moving forward, though no future hearings or votes have been scheduled yet. There is no companion bill mentioned for this legislation.
Part of: story →Legislative Progress
This bill has support from both parties and addresses a major issue for rural areas, but many bills like this take time to move through the full Senate.
Key Points
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
This bill permanently raises Medicare payments for hospitals in the lowest 25% of local wage areas. While it does not directly change what Medicare beneficiaries pay or their coverage, it helps keep hospitals open and staffed in communities where Medicare patients often have few other options. Patients in rural and low-income areas would benefit from better access to hospital care. Because the policy is budget neutral, hospitals above the 75th percentile wage index may see very small payment reductions.
“the area wage index applicable under this subparagraph for a fiscal year to a hospital with an area wage index (determined without regard to this clause) below the 25th percentile area wage index shall be increased by \1/2\ of the difference between the otherwise applicable final area wage index for such fiscal year for such hospital and the 25th percentile area wage index for such fiscal year across all hospitals.”
State Impacts
Milestones
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
5 articlesLawmakers introduce bipartisan legislation to help struggling rural hospitals stay open
The Save Struggling Hospitals Act, introduced by a bipartisan group in the House and Senate, would restore a CMS wage index policy for low-wage hospitals. The bill aims to codify a policy that increased reimbursements for rural hospitals in the bottom 25th percentile of wage levels.
Rep. Sewell introduces bipartisan "Save Struggling Hospitals Act"
U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell and Rep. David Kustoff introduced legislation to fix outdated Medicare payment formulas threatening rural hospitals. The bill would ensure hospitals in low-wage areas receive fair reimbursement to help them keep their doors open and compete for medical staff.
'Save Struggling Hospitals' Act
U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Marsha Blackburn introduced the Save Struggling Hospitals Act to ensure rural hospitals are fairly reimbursed for their services. The legislation addresses the flawed Medicare Area Wage Index that has disproportionately harmed rural facilities.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Save Struggling Hospitals Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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