The House Appropriations Committee has approved a proposed constitutional amendment that seeks to try and maintain the level of funding to hospitals that take Medicaid patients.
Rep. Chuck Kleckley’s bill would establish the Hospitalization Stabilization formula, which establishes the rate the legislature gives the hospitals in a fiscal year. Unlike other state funding guarantees, any rate reduction in subsequent years would require a vote of two-thirds of the legislature.
The formula would also be used to assess fees to hospitals. The fees would be collected and put into a constitutionally protect fund, which means if the state Medicaid match rate is cut the state’s general fund would be spared. That money would also be used to leverage federal Medicaid matching funds.
Although the bill was approved without opposition, details on how it would actually work are few and far between. Details on which hospitals would have to pay as well as details about the funding formula itself are still unclear.