Toward a high performance health care system for vulnerable populations: funding for safety-net hospitals

Toward a high performance health care system for vulnerable populations: funding for safety-net hospitals

Collection:
Health Policy and Services Research
Author(s):
Bachrach, Deborah, author
Braslow, Laura, author
Karl, Anne, author
Contributor(s):
Commonwealth Fund. Commission on a High Performance Health System, issuing body.
Commonwealth Fund, issuing body.
Publication:
New York, NY : Commonwealth Fund, March 2012
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Benchmarking
Delivery of Health Care -- economics
Hospital Administration
Quality Indicators, Health Care
Vulnerable Populations
United States
Genre(s):
Technical Report
Abstract:
Safety-net hospitals play an indispensable role in providing care to vulnerable populations. Yet, in the current economic environment, many safety-net hospitals face dire financial circumstances and struggle to provide care to growing numbers of low-income, uninsured, and Medicaid patients. This report, written on behalf of the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System, examines the funding streams on which safety-net hospitals rely and suggests strategies--not simply to sustain these hospitals but to stimulate and reward high performance. These strategies include: increasing Medicaid rates (in states that have unreasonably low rates) to safety-net hospitals with the highest shares of Medicaid and uninsured patients and lowest shares of privately insured patients, contingent upon meeting performance benchmarks; targeting Medicaid and Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments to hospitals that serve uninsured patients; and supporting safety-net hospitals' access to the capital they need to implement large-scale delivery system reforms.
Copyright:
Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY license. (More information)
Extent:
1 online resource (1 PDF file (xii, 40 pages))
Illustrations:
Illustrations
NLM Unique ID:
101581674 (See catalog record)
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101581674