by Steve Brawner (BRAWNERSTEVE@MAC.COM)
Arkansas health care providers are facing increasing costs without matching payment increases from government payers and insurance companies. It’s a major issue in a state that ranks near the bottom in maternal and infant mortality rankings.
Dr. Joe Thompson, president and CEO of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement, a healthcare research and policy development organization, said the state is “still in a recovery mode from the acute effects of COVID.” Thompson was referring to inflationary pressures caused by the pandemic, when labor and supply costs increased dramatically. While hospitals are no longer relying on high-paid traveling nurses, the use of that resource during the pandemic has driven up labor costs for full-time staff.
At the same time, Medicaid, which serves primarily lower-income individuals, hasn’t increased payments, while Medicare, which serves older Arkansans, hasn’t increased them enough. Commercial insurance, the health care system’s other primary payer, is trying to limit reimbursement increases.
State of the State Mid-Year 2024: Medical providers pinched by disparity in costs, payments
