Affordable Care Act provision helps Iowa hospitals receive fair reimbursement from Medicare

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) today announced that 20 Iowa hospitals have received over $20.8 million in additional Medicare reimbursements under a provision of the Affordable Care Act known as the "Lowest Quartile Provision."  These Iowa hospitals have historically been underpaid because Medicare bases payments largely on geography.

During the healthcare reform debate in 2010, Braley led efforts to save taxpayers' money by eliminating geographic disparities and changing the way Medicare reimburses doctors and hospitals.  In a late-night negotiating session with Congressional leaders, Braley successfully added a provision to the Affordable Care Act to provide catch-up payments to hospitals located in the lowest 25 percent of counties receiving Medicare reimbursements.

"For decades, Iowa's doctors and hospitals have been punished for no reason other than geography," said Rep. Braley. "These payments are one more 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.  Successfully implementing these reforms will save taxpayers billions of dollars."

Last year, the same 20 hospitals received a total of $12.5 million in catch-up payments under this law.  Under the "Lowest Quartile Provision", Iowa has received the 4^th highest amount of payments of any state.

Iowa doctors and hospitals have long received lower Medicare reimbursements than providers in other states because of a Medicare reimbursement formula that focused on geographic location over quality of care.  Despite offering some of the highest-quality, lowest-cost care in the nation, Iowa hospitals and doctors have historically been among some of the lowest-reimbursed providers in the country.

The following Iowa hospitals are receiving the funds:

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Classrooms First could cut $1 billion in operation costs

SPRINGFIELD - April 16, 2012. The Classrooms First Commission is expected to release a set of draft recommendations Tuesday that would make it easier for school districts to consolidate and help them save up to $1 billion in operations costs by sharing services, Lt. Governor Sheila Simon said today.

No districts would be forced to consolidate under the recommendations, but the state would require counties with small and declining school-age populations to study whether county-wide consolidation or sharing services would save money and boost learning.

Money recouped from what Simon calls "voluntary and virtual consolidations" would be redirected to public school classrooms so students and taxpayers would benefit from the efficiencies, according to the draft report.

"These recommendations are a road map to stronger, streamlined school districts," said Simon, chair of the Classrooms First Commission. "There's no one-size-fits-all way to achieve efficiency, but there are many ways to eliminate wasteful spending and free up money to improve learning in classrooms."

The Classrooms First Commission is a bi-partisan group of education stakeholders that was charged last fall by Governor Quinn and the General Assembly to reduce duplicative education spending and improve educational outcomes. It reviewed several paths and collected input from hundreds of Illinois educators and taxpayers through public hearings and an online survey.

The commission found that mass consolidation would cost state taxpayers nearly $4 billion up front under current law. A more cost-effective approach would be to eliminate or modify state regulations that discourage districts from voluntarily consolidating. At least 40 districts were in the process of or considering such realignments in the past year, according to the report.

"Forcing districts to merge is not realistic, but providing them the resources and tools to consolidate on a voluntary or virtual basis is well within reach." said State Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, a member of the Classrooms First Commission.

The draft recommendations to promote voluntary consolidation at little or no new cost to the state include :

·         allowing compact but not contiguous districts to consolidate; currently districts must be compact and contiguous

·         expanding the regional board of school trustees dissolution authority, by allowing local districts with under 750 enrollment to seek dissolution with or without a referendum; currently this is an option for districts serving communities with under 5,000 people

·         piloting a new capital project list that targets school construction money at districts willing to consolidate and that are in need of new buildings, additions, and/or building renovations

·         phasing in lower local tax rates for new unit districts; currently, elementary and high school districts become a lower, unit taxing district immediately after consolidating

·         requiring counties with small and declining school-age populations to conduct efficiency studies that could lead to shared services, district mergers, or even county-wide districts; 12 counties currently have county-wide districts and another 16 counties have small and declining student populations, according to state and federal population projections through 2030

"These changes will help to remove red tape so districts can more efficiently provide students with a quality education whether that be through consolidation or shared services," said State Superintendent of Education Christopher A. Koch.

The draft recommendations also include two legislative proposals that would promote shared services in areas such as technology, transportation and food service across districts.

The first proposal would create a revolving fund to provide short-term, low-interest loans to seed cooperative service agreements or conduct efficiency studies. The loans would be repaid with the money gained through resulting streamlining.

A second proposal would authorize the Illinois State Board of Education to provide a web-based resource management program to districts to help them identify potential savings in five major spending areas: instruction, transportation, food services, administration and facility maintenance. A pilot program of a similar service in Ohio resulted in at least a 5 percent operational savings at participating districts. At that rate, Illinois districts could realize a net savings of almost $1 billion.

"Right now districts are required to complete many annual reports, but they simply end up in a black hole and are never linked," said Michael Jacoby, executive director of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials and member of the commission. "This new service would create a business analytics tools for districts to compare their data, learn best practices and make operational changes to initiate new efficiencies. This could free up significant resources for instruction and offset the funding losses all districts are currently experiencing."

The Governor's office would establish a resource repository for the shared service agreements so districts could have samples to follow. It could be patterned after a shared service repository for municipalities in New Jersey.

"Shared services offer school districts the opportunity to provide more diverse curriculum options and expand educational opportunity, while streamlining delivery and saving money," said Jason Leahy, executive director of the Illinois Principals Association and a member of the Classrooms First Commission. "It is my hope that the Classrooms First Commission recommendations will point districts towards the tools and resources they need to accomplish this goal."

A statewide health insurance pool and a state-run online professional development tool for various health/safety trainings are additional options for savings and streamlining, the report states.

"Through these recommendations, we hope to eliminate barriers to efficiency and provide school districts the tools they need to streamline operations and put resources into the classroom," said Paul Swanstrom, executive director of the High School District Organization of Illinois and a member of the Classrooms First Commission. "I look forward to working with Lt. Governor Simon and my fellow commission members as we gather public input and work to finalize these recommendations."

The Classrooms First Commission is scheduled to meet Tuesday in Springfield to vote on the release of the draft recommendations, and public hearings are set to begin Thursday in Champaign. Comments will also be collected at www.ltgov.illinois.gov.

Simon said public input will be incorporated into the final recommendations. A final report will be delivered to the Governor and General Assembly by July 1.

MEDIA ADVISORY

EVENT: Classrooms First Commission meeting

TIME: 11 a.m.

DATE: Tuesday, April 17

PLACE: Fourth Floor Board Room, Illinois State Board of Education, 100 N. First St., Springfield

Parents and educators are always trying to spark student participation whether it's in the classroom, in the local community, or throughout the world.

When middle-school students at Allison Academy in North Miami Beach were asked what they could do to improve their country, they focused on what they understood - bullying, violence and racism.

Those problems are all rooted in the same issues, says Rachel Albert, author of "Quest to Telos," (www.QuestToTelos.com), a young adult novel where fantasy meets reality and even world peace is possible.

"They stem from a lack of personal integrity and absence of social responsibility," she says.

"Children who choose to put those values into practice are actively working toward peace. But they can only put into practice what they've learned; instilling those values may seem simple, but many parents miss the mark and actually model the opposite."

Throwing money at social problems like racism or violence doesn't resolve them, Albert says. But children can.

"The energy from kids' excitement can make a real difference and we need their energy focused right here at home," says the mother of four. "They see problems; it's up to us to give them the tools to address them."

The following tips can help parents teach their children personal integrity and social responsibility, giving them the keys to world peace.

• Never lie in front of your kids. It may seem obvious, but many parents lie in front of their children or encourage them to lie; misstating a child's age to save money on movie tickets or allowing them to take credit for school projects completed by the parent.  These seemingly inconsequential lies suggest it's OK, even good, to distort the truth. This causes long-term damage a million times more costly than whatever was gained in the short term.

• Give your kids a reason why. Author Mark Twain once said that the two most important days of your life are the day you are born and the day you figure out why.  If you fail to tell your kids why we are here, you have missed the opportunity to
figure out what motivates them and gets them excited. This is the most important key to getting kids' cooperation and empowering them to help the world.

• Don't criticize your children. Criticism is toxic, so why do almost all parents criticize their kids?  When we focus on what they aren't, they believe they can't. This creates angry children who express their pain by bullying others.  It's better to tell them how you feel rather than what you think of them, e.g., "I feel frustrated that you didn't listen to me," or "Can you say that in a more loving way?"

• Don't speak badly about other people. This is probably one of the hardest things to do, considering we're a generation that pays for gossip.  Speaking badly about others teaches kids to look for what they view as the negative in others and take joy in sharing it.

• Model charity. Actions speak louder than any words. When you teach kindness to children, they tend to feel empathy and have more successful lives, a crucial step toward achieving world peace.

Once we tackle the issues plaguing America, then as a model nation, we will be ready to tackle world peace, Albert says. Kids are hungry to form an identity and make their mark on the world. It's easier to try to bring peace to another country, but that never works. We need to start at home.

About Rachel Albert

Rachel Albert is a certified court reporter and business owner. "Quest to Telos" is her debut novel; it's being used by a private school to develop an inspirational, critical-thinking curriculum for middle-school students ready by the summer. Albert is currently working on a sequel. She is a staunch advocate of boosting teen literacy while inspiring kids to make a difference starting with their own hearts.

Rev. Ron Stewart Saying Good Bye

QCI leaders and staff attended Rev. Ron Stewart's last church service on March 11th. Photographed is Leslie Kilgannon, Rev. Ron Stewart, & Rev. David Geenen. His message to us and his congregation is saying "YES to Change". Yes for him in retirement, including a new chapter of life (moving out of state and getting married) and yes for his congregation accepting a new pastor. QCI and Board members attended his last sermon and gave him a gift to a weekend getaway at Starved Rock Lodge. Rev. Ron worked with QCI for 9 plus years serving at QCI president for 6 of those years. Rev. Ron feels that his work with QCI allowed him to grow and pass that growth on to his own congregation. Good Luck. We will miss you!

Leadership Assembly

What's New

QCI Monthly Committees

Fundraising meets April 20th, 2012

The Fundraising Committee is currently working on QCI's 25th Anniversary Fundraising Celebration to be held in the fall of 2012. We are very excited about this event and will give you more details as our event details unfold. Please save this date. We hope to have all of you there. Our Trivia Night Fundraiser was a success. We raised $2200. We had a great time and enjoyed having all of you there. Thanks for all your support. As we grow with each event we hope our profits grow too. We have decided to have hold at least two more fundraising event for this year. We are very excited about all the FUN we are having this year!

Transportation Equity and Jobs Coalition

The Transportation Equity and Jobs Coalition has been working hard to ensure minority hiring on the jobs created by the Chicago to Moline Passenger Rail is a priority. The Coalition continues to grow and has participation from the US Department of Labor's Office of Apprenticeship, Youth Build Quad Cities, NAACP Davenport and NAACP Rock Island County, as well as many people of faith. We are continuing to meet with local stakeholders for the passenger rail and are holding true to our strategic campaign. One of our leaders participated in the Transportation Equity Network (TEN) annual conference in Washington D.C. to connect with others who are working on similar projects across the US and also met with our legislators to tell them about what the Quad Cities is doing and seeking their support. Our next meeting is April 25th at 10 AM at Church of Peace in Rock Island. 

SAVE THE DATE! QCI's Fire of Faith Prayer Vigil for Economic and Racial Justice on Thursday, May 3rd, 2012 . As part of the Transportation Equity Network, (TEN) QCI will be hosting a prayer vigil to join in a nationwide movement April 29 through May 6, as we take our faith into action around our values of Love Thy Neighbor and The Common Good. More information to come! 

During this time, Congress will be home to hear from you before they decide on the Federal Budget priorities for 2013. As the budget is moral document laying out the direction of our nation, we will remind our leaders that our faith instructs us to TAKE ACTION in the name of our values of LOVE THY NEIGHBOR and THE COMMON GOOD!  For more information about TEN's Fire Of Faith Movement, visit www.transportationequity.org

On April 5th, 2012, QCI Transportation leaders joined leaders from Chicago, E. St. Louis, & Springfield for a meeting with IL Dept of Transportation Chief Counsel, Ellen Haskins to discuss implementation of the state wide Community Benefits Agreement (CBA). Pictured from the QC is Vera Kelly, President of Davenport NAACP, Kent Ferris, Director of Social Action, Diocese of Davenport, Rev. David Geenen, QCI Vice President and Pastor at 15th Ave. Christian Church, Rock Island, and Leslie Kilgannon, Executive Director of QCI.

Immigration Task Force  

The Immigration Task Force is focusing on voter registration, making sure eligible voters are registered. Friday April 20th, QCI leaders will join a national webinar training on GOTV, voter registration. Task force is also focusing on know your rights sessions for the immigrant communities in the Quad Cities. A broader concern is that each immigrant understands the rights and challenges pertinent to his or her immigration status. The task force is looking at ways to work with other entities in the community to make this information available. Training will  be provided to task force members so they will have a fuller understanding of immigration legal issues. Lastly, the task force has been discussing the problem of human trafficking along Interstate 80 in Iowa.  The task force will continue to explore this issue. Our next meeting is Tuesday, April 24th, 2012at 5:30pm at Village Inn (Harrison Street).

Health Equity Task Force

The Health Equity Task Force is looking at health care issues that arise when patients are not fluent in written and spoken English.  We know that clear communication is often a challenge in health care encounters, especially those that are stressful, but a whole level of complexity is added when a third party translator is involved.  Finding ways to help these situations locally will help reduce certain disparities in health care, improve equity in health care services, and ultimately, we hope, improve the health of a significant number of members of our community.  Please join us at our next meeting:  5:30 PM, Monday, April 30th, 2012, QCI Conference Room, 111 E. 3rd St (4th floor), Davenport.

Hear Us Now Youth Leaders

Yvonne Villagomez has organized and is leading a group of 10 or so Latino youths from St. Mary's Davenport parish.  The youth have made it clear that they're interested in tackling the issues of immigration/discrimination and bullying.  The leader are planning their meeting with our elected congress persons to discuss the need for humane immigration reform that keeps families together. If your youth groups wants to get involved, please call QCI office.

Community Events

Open House for The Muslim Community of the Quad Cities, Saturday, May 5th, 2012 from 2-5 pm, at 2115 Kimberly Road, Bettendorf, IA 52722. For more information please call Talia Alvi (563) 505-0708 or email at taliaavli@yahoo.com.

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