MedPAC to cut hospital payments
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
The American Hospital Association urges Congress to overrule MedPAC's Jan. 10 recommendation that hospitals receive a market basket minus half of the 0.9% expected productivity growth for hospital inpatient and outpatient services in fiscal year 2007. "MedPAC's recommendation for less than a full market basket update is very troubling and threatens hospitals' ability to continue to provide vital health care services," AHA states. The reduction in payments follows a similar move last year (1"The Gray Sheet" Jan. 17, 2005, p. 20)...