Persistence Prevails: $183 Million in Reimbursement Over Next Ten Years
Current Medicare laws, along with a stagnant Medicare wage index, resulted in major inequities in hospital Medicare reimbursement. Hospitals in larger urban areas receive more reimbursement than those in rural areas, even though all hospitals pay the same amount for wages, equipment and supplies. Well now the laws have changed – thanks to the perseverance of several key North Dakota figures.
Years of effort on behalf of healthcare by North Dakota Congressmen, Representative Earl Pomeroy, Senator Kent Conrad, and Senator Byron Dorgon, as well as N.D. physicians and healthcare administrators, especially St. Alexius CEO Dick Tschider, have resulted in additional reimbursement for the state of N.D.
The new Medicare bill will bring in $25 million for N.D. hospitals over the next three years for improving Medicare reimbursement. The bill states that hospitals that have been unfairly penalized by low wage indexes can apply for reclassification to receive a higher rate. It also addresses rural payment inequities. With the new bill, $65 million has been allocated to equalize the standardized payment rate, as well as to establish low-volume adjustment payment, protect payments for rural outpatient services and increase funding to critical access hospital providers.
North Dakota physicians will also receive $25 million for services over the next two years, and $15 million over the next three years to address geographic inequities in physician reimbursement. Also over the next three years, $3 million has been allocated for a new “physician shortage area bonus payment” for providers in underserved areas.
And it doesn’t stop there! Over the next ten years, $8.2 million will go toward improvements to ambulance payments for rural and urban providers. Another $3.8 million will go toward increasing funding for dialysis care and protecting payments for rehabilitation services.
The new Medicare bill is an accomplishment that resulted from a lot of heart and drive. Meetings were regularly held at both St. Alexius and Medcenter One to discuss the serious inequity problem. Trips were made to Washington, D.C. to emphasize the struggles that rural hospitals have been enduring. The fight for a new law has been a priority for years, and in the words of CEO Dick Tschider, the reward has been overwhelming.
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