NEW: The coronavirus pandemic has wrecked hospital budgets. A Trump administration plan that's been tied up in legal challenges for years could leave them in a bigger hole. buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetil…
A deep dive into the Trump admin's plan to drastically cut how much hospitals are reimbursed when they prescribe drugs to Medicare patients. Hospitals say they use millions earned from the program each year to serve lower income/underserved patients buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetil…
The govt, aligned with the pharma industry, said the program gives hospitals an incentive to overprescribe, and wasn't meant to generate so much $ for hospitals. A judge found the feds exceeded their authority in cutting the rate; an appeal is pending buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetil…
Meanwhile, while everyone waits for the DC Circuit to rule, the govt is exploring options to make the rate cut in a way that could survive a future legal challenge — over objections from hospitals that asked the agency to pause during the pandemic buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetil…
TLDR: Hospitals and the Trump administration have been fighting in court for years over the future of a billion-dollar Medicare program. The pandemic raises the stakes for hospitals now facing steep losses. buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetil…
