Clinics, hospital brace for funding cuts

STAFF WRITER

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Local healthcare providers said they are looking at ways to prepare for potential healthcare cuts ahead of New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez’s special session.

According to an article by the Public News Service, state health care advocates are expressing concern over potential Medicaid cuts.

“The state is losing $265 million just in federal funds and then state funding was around $67 million short,” said New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty Staff Attorney Abuko Estrada the Public News Service article. “That’s over $330 million lost to the health-care system and economy.”

Roosevelt General Hospital is keeping an eye on how to accommodate for potential cuts, according to Public Relations Director Greg McFarland.

“Reimbursement rates and cuts have always been a hurdle in rural health care,” said McFarland. “It’s something that is being felt across the state. It’s forcing facilities like ours to take a closer look at the revenue cycle to find new ways to generate revenue.”

McFarland said he could not say exactly how RGH would be affected until and if they receive cuts.

Seferino Montano, CEO for La Casa Family Health Center, said he is not expecting cuts to Medicaid because La Casa is a federally qualified health center.

However, Montano said they are receiving cuts of $107,000 from the Rural Primary Health Care Act.

“New Mexico is in a real dire situation when it comes to revenue,” said Montano. “Cuts are cuts because your budget is increased. They (the state) can’t pay their bills (because of decreased oil production). They’ll see what the special session calls for.”

He also said La Casa plans to accommodate budget cuts by looking into how to increase their market share and number of patients.

Montano added the Affordable Health Care Act helped La Casa with revenue especially with Martinez’s decision to expand Medicaid under the act.

“Now you had a means to pay for that (health care),” Montano said. “It helped us tremendously. It was important for a lot of the patients who came to the clinic. The problem is they didn’t anticipate that Medicaid was going to expand or oil production was going to increase.”

Montano said he won’t know what other cuts to expect until the special session occurs, but hopes it will not affect personnel at the center.

“You always look at reducing where it costs you the most,” said Montano. “We may have to reduce a provider to do that, (and) it reduces the health care you can provide.”