DATE: December
11, 2001
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT: Supporting the Healthcare Safety Net in San Diego
SUMMARY
San Diego County has one of the highest populations of uninsured of any
county in the nation. To further add to this challenge, businesses in
San Diego County are primarily small and family-owned and often not able
to
provide health insurance benefits to their employees. The world's most
traveled international border crossing adjoins our county and this also
adds unique challenges for the delivery of healthcare services to the
region.
The healthcare safety net in San Diego County is a network of private sector hospitals and community clinics, rather than a County hospital. A recent change in federal policy to reduce the Medicaid Upper Payment Limit (UPL) will seriously undermine the already fragile healthcare safety net in San Diego. Hospitals have an incredibly low MediCal reimbursement rates and this new policy means losses of approximately $31 million annually to local hospitals.
These losses will impact urgent care centers, emergency department services, community-based efforts, school-based health centers, disease management programs for indigent populations and other critical safety net services for the region.
Approval of today's action will authorize the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors to send a letter to President George W. Bush and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services urging them to reconsider this new policy and the tremendous impacts on San Diego County and California.
RECOMMENDATION
Supervisors Greg Cox and Dianne Jacob:
Direct the Chief Administrative Officer to draft a letter for the Chairman's signature to President George W. Bush and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services urging them to reconsider the new policy reducing the Medicaid Upper Payment Limit for hospitals.
Fiscal Impacts:
There are no fiscal impacts associated with this recommendation.
BACKGROUND
San Diego County has one of the highest populations of uninsured of any
county in the nation. To further add to this challenge, businesses in
San Diego County are primarily small and family-owned and often not able
to
provide health insurance benefits to their employees. The world's most
traveled international border crossing adjoins our County and this also
adds unique challenges for the delivery of healthcare services to the
region.
The healthcare safety net in San Diego County is a network of private sector hospitals and community clinics, rather than a County hospital. A recent change in federal policy to reduce the Medicaid Upper Payment Limit (UPL) will seriously undermine the already fragile healthcare safety net in San Diego. Hospitals have incredibly low MediCal reimbursement rates and this new policy means losses of approximately $31 million annually to local hospitals.
These losses will impact urgent care centers, emergency department services, community-based efforts, school-based health centers, disease management programs for indigent populations and other critical safety net services for the region.
Approval of today's action will authorize the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors to send a letter to President George W. Bush and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services urging them to reconsider this new policy stressing the tremendous impacts on San Diego's healthcare safety net.
The attacks of September 11th and ongoing concerns of bioterrorism are clear reminders of the crucial role that the public healthcare safety net plays in a time of crisis. As the front lines of response in a major medical emergency or disaster, our already underfunded safety net hospitals cannot sustain another cut to funding without seriously impacting services.
We urge your support!
Respectfully submitted,
GREG COX
Supervisor, First District
DIANNE JACOB
Supervisor, Second District
