Complex relationship between maternal unit closures and SDP funds
State-directed payments (SDPs) are credited with maintaining maternal healthcare access. However maternal care units continue to close, despite record SDP funding. Looming cuts to SDPs are widely expected by providers and advisors to result in more maternal care unit closures. But some emerging alternatives aim to improve some access. Maternal care for Medicaid enrollees is…
Trump administration affordability push features SDP cuts
Voters are demanding action to improve healthcare affordability ahead of the midterm elections. The Trump administration sees an aggressive push on state-directed payments (SDPs) as a way to respond to that demand. This year, healthcare affordability and availability were the most important issues to Americans for the first time since 2020, according to Gallup polling.…
Texas Medicaid hospital funding gap grows amid CMS delays on FY27 approvals
Sept. 18 Update Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Sept. 17 that CMS had agreed to allocate nearly $12 billion in Medicaid supplemental payments to the state’s healthcare providers, ending the impasse over FY27 state-directed payments (SDPs). Included in the sum is $9.15 billion for hospitals, which the Texas Hospital Association (THA) estimated were losing $27…
SDP cuts will start with $8.7 billion in 2028: study
Federal cuts in state-directed payments (SDPs) will begin with an $8.7 billion cut in January 2028, according to a new study. The research, which was published Sept. 9 in the journal Health Affairs, examined the impact on state finances of federal SDP cuts included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). The cut in…
Medicaid state-directed payments for hospitals face cuts across 37 states under OBBBA
Hospital state-directed payments (SDPs) in at least 37 states are set to be reduced as part of Medicaid cutbacks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), according to a new analysis. Roughly $60 billion in current federal spending on hospital SDPs will come in above the OBBBA’s limits, set at 110% of the Medicare…
Senate Medicaid hearing highlights the debate over federal spending cuts
Cuts to federal Medicaid spending are necessary to streamline the program and don’t necessarily portend tough times for providers, conservative policymakers and analysts argued during a Senate hearing. The Aug. 4 hearing of the Senate Budget Committee included discussion of whether healthcare policies in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) should be scaled back…
Biggest SDP recipients raise concerns about implementing rule
Hospitals in the states that receive the most funding from state-directed payments (SDPs) identified the range of impacts from a proposed rule and suggested alternative approaches. The comments from hospitals and hospital advocacy groups came in response to a proposed rule implementing SDP provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). OBBBA, enacted a…
Medicaid provider tax proposed rule could cut payments by $220 billion over 10 years
A proposed rule from CMS implements anticipated changes to the system of provider taxes that help fund supplemental reimbursement in Medicaid. The changes are required under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA, also referred to as the Working Families Tax Cut legislation), with the proposed rule filling in details. The repercussions of the rule…
States push new hospital funding arrangements
States are implementing a growing number of initiatives to provide funding for rural or otherwise financially struggling hospitals. This push comes amid data showing that a record number of hospitals are financially distressed, and advocates warn that coming federal Medicaid cuts will worsen the situation. Indiana targeted funds Indiana hospitals celebrated a new arrangement within…
FastFinance: Patient collections trends; SDP cuts rule
HFMA’s FastFinance newsletter is now a podcast. Host Rich Daly discusses the most current and relevant healthcare news, delivered in an easily digestible format. Hospitals and health systems have improved their front-end patient collections over the last year. But back-end collections are faltering. Also, this week’s Weird Number: $1.3 billion. That’s the amount of Medicaid…