WARREN TESTIFIES BEFORE HOUSE APPOPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
The health care plan recently considered in the U.S. Senate would have drastically cut long term care funding, THCA Chairman and CEO Kevin Warren told the House Appropriations Committee in testimony last month.
The committee, which handles state budgetary issues for the House, asked Warren and other Texas health care leaders to speak to them about the potential impact of federal action on Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Warren told the committee the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) would have resulted in an estimated 20% funding reduction for providers. That, on top of providers already losing an average of $20 per patient day under current Medicaid rates, would have been devastating to Texas facilities, according to Warren.
The BCRA failed to pass the U.S. Senate this summer when it fell one vote short of approval. However, similar plans are still under discussion in Washington and another such sweeping proposal could come before Congress again during the current term.
Warren also spoke to the committee about the Quality Incentive Payment Program (QIPP), which is set to go into effect in September. It provides supplemental payments under the 1115 Waiver, the extension of which is currently under negotiations with the federal government.