Reject Site Neutral Payments
The Issue
Site neutral payments refers to proposals that would eliminate the differential pricing between a hospital or hospital outpatient department and a freestanding clinic. In recent years, Congress and the Administration have looked to implement site neutral payments as way to reduce Medicare spending at hospital outpatient departments, which are reimbursed at a higher rate than a freestanding clinic. By implementing so-called site neutral payments, these proposals would instead reimburse hospital-based outpatient departments, such as the Foster Family Community health Center, at a significantly reduced rate.
The Impact
Munson Healthcare currently operates 49 off-campus Hospital Outpatient Departments in 29 communities of Northern Michigan. This includes providing services such as radiology and lab services at rural and remote locations throughout our 11,000 square mile service area.
Munson Medical Center in Traverse City is our largest hospital and operates several off-campus hospital-based departments that provide critical services such as cardiac rehab, childbirth services, behavioral health and infusion services and cancer care. For Munson Medical Center, over 8.5% of our total payments are for services provided in an excepted off-campus location including:
- Advanced Wound Center
- Audiology Hearing Clinic
- Sleep Disorders Center
- Bay Area Urology
- Foster Family Community Health Center
- Munson Nephrology Consultants
- Smith Family Breast Health Center
- Thomas Judd Center
At these locations, services provided include:
- General surgery
- Physical Therapy
- Radiology
- Oncology/Infusion
- X-Ray
- Cardiac Rehab
- Childbirth Services
- Community Health
- EMS Education
- Home Health / Hospice
- Massage Therapy
- Nutrition
- Occupational Health
- Pain Management
- Pharmacy
- Pre-Procedure Services
- Pulmonary Rehab
- Sleep Center
- Urgent Care
These services would not be provided by any physician’s office or freestanding clinic and are only being provided because of Munson Healthcare’s commitment to providing the highest quality of care, closest to home for the patients we serve.
If site neutral payments were extended to currently excepted facilities, we risk the continued operation of specific service line such as:
- Behavioral Health Services including Psych and Substance Abuse
- Women’s and Children’s services including Pediatrics and O/B care.
- Specialty Care Services including Neonatology, Nephrology, Infectious Disease, HIV and Bariatric services
- Cancer Care including Infusion services
What You Can Do
Consider reaching out to your member of Congress and Senators to ask them to ensure no further site neutral reductions for hospitals or outpatient departments.