April 24, 2008

Meeks Supports Protecting Medicaid

(WASHINGTON, DC)–Rep. Gregory W. Meeks joined his colleagues in the House of Representatives to support H.R. 5613, the Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008. H.R. 5613 will place a moratorium on seven regulations that if implemented will reduce Federal Medicaid funding to States by nearly $20 billion over the next five years.

Without this legislation, New York would lose vital funding for health services including funding for education, clinic services, and rehabilitation; particularly hard-hit would be public hospitals that depend on this funding to help the poor and uninsured. Just three of these regulations that affect public hospitals will cost the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation $500 million a year. These regulations will cripple public hospitals and greatly diminish access to care for New Yorkers.

Around the country elected officials and health care providers have called on the Bush Administration to halt the implementation of these regulations and to further examine their effects on States and beneficiaries. At a time when many states are facing revenue shortfalls, these regulations would be devastating.

“In the Administration’s efforts to save money it did not adequately consider the ramifications of the proposed Medicaid cuts,” stated Meeks “This legislation will help to protect the health of millions of Medicaid beneficiaries. It would place moratoriums on regulations that would harm the most vulnerable Americans and would devastate our fragile public hospital system.”