Hospitals are always open to provide care to all Pennsylvanians who need it, regardless of their ability to pay. Medicaid supplemental payments to hospitals help make this possible, enabling hospitals to provide lifesaving and critical care for burns and trauma incidents, to deliver babies, and to serve communities in the state’s most rural areas.
The 2022-23 Pennsylvania budget maintains current funding for Medicaid supplemental payments. Here are five ways Medical supplemental payments help Pennsylvanians.
These payments support patients in rural communities.
Pennsylvania’s 16 critical access hospitals have unique financial challenges and rely on Medicaid supplemental payments to serve their communities. These hospitals provide care in rural communities that would otherwise lack nearby access to essential health care.
Medicaid supplemental payments help babies and mothers.
Pennsylvania hospitals delivered 123,376 babies in 2020, and payments to the state’s 146 obstetrics and neonatal units helped ensure care for new mothers, babies, and those expecting.
These payments care for those with severe burns.
The seven burn care centers across Pennsylvania care for patients with severe and complex burns, and some offer specialized care for children with burn injuries. However, burn care centers face unique financial challenges, making it critical to provide Medicaid supplemental payments to ensure these units continue to operate.
Medicaid supplemental payments provide lifesaving care.
Pennsylvania’s 49 trauma centers specialize in caring for patients with life-threatening injuries, such as those from vehicle crashes and gunshot wounds. These centers saved 47,512 lives in 2020, so it’s critical that Pennsylvania continue to fund Medicaid supplemental payments to make this care possible.
These payments bring in additional funds to support essential care for Pennsylvanians.
Any investment Pennsylvania makes in Medicaid supplemental payments is matched with federal funding, allowing the state to maximize its impact and bring in additional money to support health care for Pennsylvanians.