PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island hospitals could see a $28 million yearly boost in Medicare reimbursements if the U.S. House passes the COVID-19 relief bill approved by the U.S. Senate over the weekend, the state’s congressional delegation said on Monday.
The bill includes language that would reverse a change in Medicare reimbursement rates made in 2018 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that resulted in all of Rhode Island falling under an “all-urban” designation, costing health care organizations in the state roughly $28 million a year.
The bill would reinstate the “imputed rural floor, ” an artificial benchmark on which hospital reimbursement levels are set, the delegation said.
The 2018 CMS change had designated Rhode Island, along with Delaware and New Jersey, as “all-urban” states under Medicare guidelines.
“The previous administration dealt a deliberate financial blow to hospitals in a few Democratic states, creating 15%-20% payment disadvantages against hospitals just over state lines. I’ve been pressing to fix this injustice at every opportunity,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. “I’m pleased that we got this done so early in the Biden administration; as it will restore tens of millions of dollars to our hospitals, which serve Rhode Islanders so well during this pandemic.”
The potential increase in reimbursements was hailed as “critical funding” for local hospitals by the Hospital Association of Rhode Island.
“The Hospital Association of Rhode Island is grateful for the leadership of the Rhode Island federal delegation on this important Medicare issue,” said HARI President Teresa Paiva Weed. “Reinstatement of the imputed rural floor for all urban states restores critical funding necessary for hospitals to invest in their workforce, facilities, technology and most importantly the health care needs of our community.”
