How do cutbacks in Medicare and Medicaid funding affect local hospitals?
The federal government funds health care for the elderly through Medicare and state and federal governments fund care for the indigent through Medicaid. Cutbacks in the Medicare and Medicaid programs make those types of patients less attractive for some hospitals, which may encourage them to try to limit the number of elderly and indigent patients they treat. Because of our mission of service, DCH hospitals accept all types of patients. Cutbacks in Medicare and Medicaid payments can mean that we receive less money for treating Medicare and Medicaid patients than it costs us to provide the care. That means more unreimbursed “free” care must be added to our overhead, which drives up the cost of health care for everyone. How does DCH know its hospitals provide quality care? The staffing levels at DCH hospitals are more than adequate to provide quality care. The number of employees and the type of employees per patient at DCH hospitals are comparable to other hospitals in the Southeast. Ou
