Hospital tax: Memorial Health System braces for new state fee that will cost the local organization $1M
By Justin McIntosh, jmcintosh@mariettatimes.comArticle Photos
Fact Box
Many hospitals are cutting now
The Ohio Hospital Association survey found hospitals have already taken many cost-cutting measures:
Half (48 percent) have already enacted layoffs
Two-thirds (67 percent) have not filled vacancies
Over one-third (37 percent) have reduced or eliminated services
One in 10 (12 percent) have cancelled or delayed expansion or renovation projects
Four in five (81 percent) have taken other cost-cutting measures such as reducing community benefit spending, reducing employee benefits or freezing wages
Expected future cuts:
One in five (18 percent) plan to lay off additional employees
Half (50 percent) plan to leave future vacancies unfilled
Two in five (39 percent) plan to reduce or eliminate services
Half (49 percent) plan to cancel or delay expansion or renovation projects
The majority (64 percent) will take additional cost-cutting measures
Source: Ohio Hospital Association
Marietta Memorial and Selby General hospitals are set to lose just under $1 million combined when the state's new hospital franchise fee is levied Monday.
Scott Cantley, president and CEO of the Memorial Health System, which operates Marietta Memorial and Selby General, said the hospitals anticipated the assessment and planned their budgets in a way to keep services from being cut, but future growth will have to be put on hold.
"We think we're well situated to respond to this year's challenges without making any cuts in service," he said. "With $1 million, you'd probably see more growth from Memorial this year, but without it, you probably won't. Without (that money) we'll have to be more conservative about how we grow and how we build."
State looks
to balance budget
The Ohio Hospital Association recently surveyed hospitals statewide and found that, combined with the current economic climate, the fee will keep nearly half of all hospitals from expanding or renovating their facilities.
About 20 percent planned to lay off additional employees and nearly half planned to leave future vacancies unfilled, the survey found.
"It's absolutely correct to say that a combination of the current economy and this new, added burden of the state hospital tax are forcing hospitals to lay off, delay services or make other cuts," said Tiffany Himmelriech, manager of media and public relations at the Ohio Hospital Association. "Of the hospitals that have or are planning to delay or cancel renovation projects, a lot of those are falling in the realm of emergency department modernizations."
Hospitals need
modern facilities
With issues such as H1N1, an aging population and people living less healthy lifestyles at the forefront of concerns for medical professionals, a lack of modernized facilities can become a problematic issue, she said.
"How long will (patients) have to wait, and certainly for those hospitals that are having to make the tough choices to cut services, how far will those folks have to drive if those services aren't available in their backyard anymore?" Himmelriech said.
The Ohio General Assembly assessed the fee as a way to help the state balance its budget and to draw from a pool of federal Medicaid funds, said Rep. Jennifer Garrison, D-Marietta. Garrison voted for the budget and as a result for the hospital franchise fee, since it was included in the state budget.
Excluded from the fee were children's hospitals and hospitals that don't charge their patients for services, she said.
Garrison said the fee would bring the state $600 million a year, while allowing it to gain $1.4 billion in federal Medicaid funds. From those federal funds, she said, hospitals will get reimbursed a set percentage meant to offset the fees they had to pay.
"The goal was to get more federal dollars into the system so we could serve more people and have the money necessary to serve the people in need," she said. "Without these funds, it would have been impossible to pay for the state Medicaid program in this biennium budget."
The hospital association, however, said statewide hospitals would lose a total of $145 million over the next two years.
"The loss for each hospital is very different because the way they're reimbursed is through a 5 percent Medicaid and supplement rate," Himmelriech said. "Hospitals that treat a high volume of Medicaid patients will recoup a higher rate."
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MT1234
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11-27-09 6:10 PM
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Parrothead, "President Obama has shattered the budget record for first-year presidents -- spending nearly double what his predecessor did when he came into office and far exceeding the first-year tabs for any other U.S. president in history. In fiscal 2009 the federal government spent $3.52 trillion -- $2.8 trillion in 2000 dollars, which sets a benchmark for comparison." From AP Newes
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rikrab
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11-27-09 4:01 PM
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The President of the United States is only a part of the governing body of this country. The President has the important job of being a public figure-head. The president becomes a scapegoat when the country is experiencing problems. The others quietly slip away to later reappear in another political office.
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rocker
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11-27-09 2:47 PM
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Asknot, Bush told no lies. Those were just fictionalized news reports from the lame stream media telling lies about Bush. Look at all the LIES Obama has told since he has been in office. I can name a few just in 11 months if you would like to hear them.
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rocker
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11-27-09 2:40 PM
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Asknot, I didn't agree with everything Bush did. As far as Bush and his oil "buddies", when you need expert advice on the oil industry, you don't go to left-wing political whackos for advice. You go to the experts in the oil industry. It costs Exxon-Mobile approx. 1 billion a month just to run the company and they pay taxes at a rate of $4000 an hour, so they better be making billions and I have no problem with that. If we drilled for oil in our own country more, the price would come down. As far as the wars go, we stabilized Iraq, freed the Iraqi people and exterminated thousands of muslim extremest terrorist trash from the area! No we haven't won in Afghanistan yet because we took our eye of them during Iraq, and allowed the taliban back in which I blamed Bush for. And if some of these countries don't like us because of our Constitution and the way we run our country, that's their problem. Funny they don't like our country yet they are all trying to come over here.
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asknot
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11-27-09 1:33 PM
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Rocker, decisions like the the bailouts and stimulus packages you like to ream Obama about. Decisions like Iraq? Decisions like making his buddies in the oil industry members of his staff and help them earn record profits. Starting 2 wars, and winning neither. Lying to the American people on a daily basis? Trampling all over the constitution? Giving the finger to the rest of the world? Someday we'll need help from the rest of the world, and if we had another Bush, they'd give us the finger when we needed it. I just don't see why having other countries like us and look up to us is such a bad thing. Maybe if they do they'll be less likely to harm us and more likely to help.
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rocker
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11-27-09 12:07 PM
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asknot, at least Bush had the "testicular fortitude" to make decisions for the good of the country not some political group. And he was not afraid of calling a terrorist a terrorist. He didn't run overseas and cut our country down and act like an apologist for the US trying to appease the europeans and the muslim world. This administration we have now along with the demokraut controlled Congress have the historical and intellectual depth of a mud puddle! So, I'll take Bush any day over these self-righteous, anti-American trash we have running this country now!
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MT1234
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11-27-09 1:14 AM
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I will not vote for any incumbent regardless of party. They have all become corrupt. Parrothead, keep reading your Marx.
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Parrothead
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11-27-09 12:11 AM
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MT1234 - Just keep drinking that FAUX NEWS Kool-Aid!
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asknot
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11-26-09 6:24 PM
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Its funny how GWB supporters forgive everything he did against their basic fundamentals they pretend to stand by. Hey can I go beat up and kill an innocent person if I say Jesus told me to do it!? Can I sneak in your house and install a microphone near your computer because a terrorist might attack you!? Provide bailouts because only yours our worthy! GWB supporters unite! You have few years left! Bring back an anti gay rights law to ensure you all show up for election. Church and state should be seperate!
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WORKINGSTIFF
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11-26-09 5:56 PM
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sorry about the spelling.. in a hurry... .... Thomas Sowell for President,... Herman Cain for VP.... Michelle Malkin for Speaker of the Hosue.... J.C Watts for Senate Majority Leader.... Rev. Manning for Secretary of State... Just sayin' ... I am NOT a racist... just a conservative. Bring back Stormin' Norman for head of JCS.
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WORKINGSTIFF
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11-26-09 5:52 PM
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We do have much to be thankful for. Praise God for America. Praise God for the freedom we still enjoy. Praise God for our Constitution and the men with Holy Spirit inspired minds and hearts who sweat and bled and died to give it to us. Ask God for the wisdom, courage, strength, mental clarity, and persistence to straighten it out. Remember, Christians suffered for centuries under all tupes of tyrants... God has NOT guaranteed you even one more generation of American strength, leadership in the world, safety in your own home, or any of the freedoms so many here TAKE FOR GRANTED !!!!!!!!!!!!! Tske back the controls in 2010. Get into damage control NOW !!!! Do not waste too much time on those who are blinded by hatred for GWB or who voted for "historic" reasons and got a full-blown oligarchist..... we don't get fooled again.
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rocker
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11-26-09 12:04 PM
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By the way...Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
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rocker
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11-26-09 11:53 AM
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Politicians and diapers have one thing in common. They should both be changed regularly and for the same reason LOL. Now who is running against Garrison??
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rocker
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11-26-09 11:43 AM
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WORKINGSTIFF, Amen on the "REVOLUTION AT THE POLLS IN 2010"!!
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rocker
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11-26-09 11:40 AM
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Instead of raising taxes on hospitals, why didn't the state start laying off employees, and cutting back in all departments like our private companies have to do. The people we have in govt. today are so crooked that when they bury them we will have to screw em in the ground.
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asknot
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11-26-09 11:20 AM
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MT1234, you want to do some checking up on who started these bailouts and stimulus packages? You want to do some checking up on who else was going to continue them? Before you start pointing fingers at another party, maybe you should do some reading! Hey, if you can find an actual Republican, get him on the ballot! I'll vote for him/her. But the Republicans haven't been to fiscally responsible of late. And they sure have loved helping their buddies out. Just read up on some of Bushes buddies in the White House and out, where they worked and all the money they got.
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rikrab
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11-26-09 10:07 AM
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There is nothing wrong with your Government. Do not attempt to adjust the representatives. We are controlling the rhetoric. If we wish to make it democratic, we will. If we wish to make it socialist, we will. We will control you. We will control you. For the next decade, sit quietly and we will control all that you perceive and fear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your Government. You are about to watch a great adventure. You are experiencing the awe and misery, which reaches from the Oligarchy to the Big Government without limits. ...never mind my favorite show just came on TV.
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deerwatcher
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11-26-09 7:58 AM
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Hey, medicaid is welfare. Medicare is for senoirs. This is 2/3 of the federal budget, along with S.S. We have a spending problem !! Not a taxing, they know how to do that. When is car inspections coming back?
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Rustler
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11-26-09 3:08 AM
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MHS "braces" for the new state fee?? LOL According to their form 990 from 2008 on guidestar**** the top 7 key employees made just shy of $2,000,000 compensation. The top compensation was nearly a third of that, $600,000 a year... one employee.
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MT1234
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11-26-09 2:16 AM
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Parrothead, like many others, you blame Geotge Bush for every calamity in the country beginning with the Kennedy assasination. Obama increased the deficit more in 6 months than Bush did in 8 years. Who came up with the AG bailout? The auto makers bailout? The financial institution bailout? The "stimulus" package? The health care fiasco? These "funded' mandates are going to be paid for by every American now and into the forseeable future. These companies, banks, investors, and government entities are not going to just eat the costs, they are going to pass every cent of those costs down to us. If I make $.02 a gallon on gas and the government assesses a $.10 a gallon tax, raises my payroll 12% for minimum wages, and requires that I pay for health care for all the employees, you're going to pay a lot more than ten more cents a gallon.
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asknot
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11-26-09 1:32 AM
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It's amazing how Obama has trashed in less than a year all the good things Bush did in 8! Maybe he just needs a Cheney to tell Americans and him to shut up and be patriotic, believe everyting we say, don;t question us or you're a unpatriotic commie. Heck it worked for Bush.
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Parrothead
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11-26-09 12:00 AM
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MT1234 - WAKE UP! The KING of the unfunded mandate programs was George W Bush!
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MT1234
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11-25-09 9:02 PM
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Parrothead, wake up! The Feds cut the money to states to finance their pipe dreams so they can espouse their "no tax on main street" propaganda, the states "tax the rich" and cut money to local government to balance the state budget so that they can proclaim "no tax on the middle class", and the "rich" and locals pass the added costs on to you. That's your Obama plan in action. Wait until they "cut costs" and "Tax the rich" to finance their Rube Goldberg healthcare legislation. You know who's going to pay for that? YOU are. Welcome to reality.
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WORKINGSTIFF
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11-25-09 5:50 PM
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Precisely!!!! The tax is passed on to YOU... working dude.... as always !!!!!!
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townie
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11-25-09 4:57 PM
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You honestly dont' think that the hospitals will suffer...Your spit cup will just now cost $400.00 instead of $300.00
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