House Members Urge Lower Reductions to DSH Payments - January 20, 2010

On January 13, 104 House members submitted a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to voice their concern about the size of the cuts to Medicaid and Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) payments proposed in the Senate health reform bill. The Senate bill would cut Medicaid DSH $19 billion and Medicare DSH by $24 billion over ten years. The letter urged congressional leaders to include more reasonable DSH cuts, as proposed in the House bill—$10 billion each from Medicaid and Medicare DSH. The letter highlights the historical role that DSH payments have played in supporting safety net hospitals, including public hospitals, and affirmed that lower cuts to DSH are necessary to sustain the health care safety net.