WASHINGTON – As Congress prepares to vote on H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Vice Chair of the Committee on Energy and Commerce Committee, is pleased that the increase in funding allocations she secured for Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) is included in the final compromise package. The DSH program provides the predominant funding mechanism for states to directly reimburse care provided to the uninsured.

“As the economy worsens and the number of jobless claims increases, hospitals are being confronted with a growing number of individuals walking through their doors who have lost their health insurance,” said DeGette. “The uninsured often rely on hospitals, such as Denver Health, to provide care; however, hospitals are not always fully reimbursed for this care. With the current recession expected to last a year or more, the increase in uncompensated care will quickly be unsustainable. Hospitals cannot continue to absorb these increasing costs and keep their doors open.”

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
Temporary Increase in Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) Payments [$500 million]
§    Increases states’ FY2009 annual DSH allotments by 2.5%
§    Increases states’ FY 2010 by 2.5% above FY2009 DSH allotment (with the adjustment)
§    After FY2010, states’ annual DSH allotments would return to 100% of the annual DSH allotments as determined under current law

“Many individuals have lost their jobs and their health insurance during this economic crisis,” said Dr. Patricia Gabow, CEO of Denver Health, a premiere safety-net hospital in the Rocky Mountain West region. “They are turning to safety-net hospitals for their health care in great numbers. At Denver Health, our uncompensated care has increased from $275 million in 2007 to over $310 million in 2008. Disproportionate Share Hospital funding is the main funding stream that helps us cover some of the cost of this care. We are grateful to Representative DeGette for once again being a champion for vulnerable patients and advocating for an increase in this funding stream in the Economic Recovery package.”

The House is set to vote on the full package tomorrow, Friday, February 13th.