 |
| Wilson Stays in Washington to Fight for New Mexicans as Budget Negotiations Continue |
October 27, 2000 |
| |
| The House of Representatives will be in session through the weekend working to complete this year’s budget
WASHINGTON, DC –Congresswoman Heather Wilson will remain in Washington, DC this weekend continuing to fight for critical Medicare reform, additional education funding and a minimum wage increase for working families in New Mexico. The House of Representatives will be in session on both Saturday and Sunday working to complete budget negotiations with the White House.
“While I would prefer to be home in New Mexico I am committed to getting meaningful Medicare reform for seniors, additional funding and flexibility for schools in New Mexico and reasonable middle class tax relief,” said Wilson. “I hope the President will put politics aside and work together with Congress to pass the final budget measures and bipartisan Medicare reforms.”
On Thursday, the House passed a “Medicare and Medicaid adjustment” package designed to makeup shortfalls in a range of federal health care programs, providing $31.2 billion over five years to sustain them. The package contains increased reimbursement rates for Medicare Choice benefit programs, which should allow about one million seniors nationwide–including 15,000 in New Mexico–to keep health care coverage offered by Medicare-HMO providers.
As first proposed by Wilson and Senator Domenici, the package will increase the Minimum Payment Floor to $525 a month per beneficiary in 2001 for all Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA’s) with populations exceeding 250,000. The health care providers in the Albuquerque MSA are currently reimbursed at $430 per beneficiary. Under the deal, the Albuquerque area would see an increase of $95 ($430 to $525) per beneficiary per month, resulting in at least an additional $34 million for New Mexico in FY2001, and at least $170 million over five years. The President has threatened to veto the bill, which also includes an increase to the minimum wage and IRA expansion supported by Wilson.
“The President should sign this bill,” Wilson said. “It requires that every dime added into Medicare Choice go to patient care, not company profit, and it will bring needed relief for Home Health Care, rural hospitals, and UNM Hospital. The bill will allow Lovelace, Presbyterian and St. Joseph’s to reconsider their decisions in July to scale back or terminate Medicare Choice coverage and stay in the program. That’s great news for New Mexico seniors and the President should support it.”
### |
|
|
|