Washington, DC - Today, Congressman Bruce Braley (IA-01) announced that 20 Iowa hospitals will receive $12.5 million in additional Medicare reimbursements. The payments will be delivered to the hospitals tomorrow, and come as a result of a provision Rep. Braley authored and passed into law during the health care negotiations last Congress.
"For decades, Iowa's doctors have been punished for no reason other than geography," said Rep. Braley. "These payments are the first step toward ending these geographic disparities and reforming our Medicare system so it finally rewards quality of care instead of the number of procedures performed."
The following Iowa hospitals will receive the funds:
Hospital Name |
County |
Estimated Payment |
Broadlawns Medical Center |
Polk |
$44,991 |
Grinnell Regional Medical Center |
Poweshiek |
$89,982 |
Iowa Lutheran Hospital |
Polk |
$479,904 |
Iowa Methodist Medical Center |
Polk |
$1,709,658 |
Lakes Regional Healthcare |
Dickinson |
$74,985 |
Marshalltown Medical & Surgical Center |
Marshall |
$164,967 |
Mary Greeley Medical Center |
Story |
$479,904 |
Mercy Hospital |
Johnson |
$509,898 |
Mercy Medical Center - Cedar Rapids |
Linn |
$584,883 |
Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines |
Polk |
$2,129,574 |
Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa |
Cerrogordo |
$1,004,799 |
Mercy Medical Center-Sioux City |
Woodbury |
$779,844 |
Skiff Medical Center |
Jasper |
$104,979 |
Spencer Municipal Hospital |
Clay |
$164,967 |
St Anthony Regional Hospital |
Carroll |
$104,979 |
St Luke's Hospital |
Linn |
$794,841 |
St Luke's Regional Medical Center |
Woodbury |
$374,925 |
Trinity Regional Medical Center |
Webster |
$434,913 |
Unity Hospital |
Muscatine |
$74,985 |
University Of Iowa Hospital & Clinics |
Johnson |
$2,399,520 |
TOTAL |
|
$12,507,499 |
Rep. Braley secured the funding during late night negotiations with Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Obama Administration officials before the final health care votelast spring. Tomorrow, Iowa hospitals will receive $12.5 million in additional Medicare reimbursements, or 8.3 percent of the available funds. Under Rep. Braley's provision, Iowa receives the 4th-highest amount of payments of any state.
Last Congress, Braley negotiated a compromise adding language to the health carereform bill that provides an immediate $800 million to address geographic disparities for both doctors and hospitals, as well as written guarantees from Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for further action toreform Medicare reimbursement rates. Iowa doctors and hospitals have long suffered from an unfair Medicare formula which reimburses them at a lower rate than providers in other states - all while offering some of the highest quality, lowest-cost care in the nation.
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