Latest news with #hospitalfunding
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Senate defeats Collins proposal to raise taxes on highest earners to help rural hospitals
The Senate voted early Tuesday morning to defeat an amendment sponsored by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to create a new top marginal tax rate for the nation's wealthiest income earners and use the money to double the size of a proposed rural hospital relief fund from $25 billion to $50 billion. Senators voted 22 to 78 against a motion to waive a 60-vote budget point of order against the amendment. Collins's amendment to President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' would have established a 39.6 percent top marginal rate for individuals with income above $25 million and for married couples with income above $50 million. The amount raised would have fully offset the cost of expanding the relief fund that Senate GOP leaders have proposed to help rural and smaller hospitals around the country that are at risk of bankruptcy because of the steep Medicaid funding cuts in the GOP megabill. 'Rural providers, especially our rural hospitals and nursing homes, are under great financial strain right now, with many having recently closed and others at risk of closing,' Collins said on the Senate floor before the vote. 'When these facilities close their doors, the people they serve are often left behind without access to health care,' she said. Eighteen Republican senators voted in support of the amendment. They were Collins and Sens. Jerry Moran (Kan.), Roger Marshall (Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Dan Sullivan (Alaska), Shelley Moore Capito ( Bill Cassidy (La.), John Kennedy (La.), John Curtis (Utah), Deb Fischer (Neb.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Josh Hawley (Mo.), Jon Husted (Ohio), Bernie Moreno (Ohio), Mitch McConnell (Ky.), Roger Wicker (Miss.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.) and Todd Young (Ind.). A handful of members of the Democratic caucus also voted for it, including Sens. Angus King (I-Maine), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.). Most Republican and Democratic senators voted against the amendment, however. Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) called it a 'Band-Aid on an amputation.' 'It provides just a tiny fraction of the nearly $1 trillion in cuts the bill will make to Medicaid. It would be much more logical to simply not cut $1 trillion from Medicaid in the first place,' he said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Republicans and Democrats buck party lines in marathon votes for Trump megabill
Senators have been crossing party lines on votes ranging from areas such as Medicaid, food assistance and hospital funding as they consider a litany of potential amendments to President Trump's megabill amid an hours-long, marathon voting session. Democrats, who have lined up in opposition to the bill, have offered a series of amendments and proposed changes throughout the voting session. While none have yet been adopted, some of the Democratic efforts have still managed to peel off GOP support. The votes come as Democrats are seeking to hold Republicans' feet to the fire with potentially politically tough votes as they ramp up attacks against the bill, which is estimated to put trillions of dollars in tax cuts toward national deficits in the coming years, along with significant changes to reduce federal dollars for programs such as Medicaid and food assistance. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a key moderate who has not yet announced how she plans to vote on the plan, has broken with her party on several votes for Democratic-backed measures. That includes efforts seeking to 'eliminate any provisions that would lead to any nursing home closures' and those that 'change state provider taxes,' as well as another to block provisions that would 'result in increased likelihood of rural hospitals being forced to close.' She also joined Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in voting with Democrats against a GOP effort to block consideration of an amendment offered by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.). The amendment sought to strip a provision in the bill that would block Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood. Murkowski, another moderate whose support GOP leadership has made efforts to secure in recent days, broke with her party on other votes as well. She also voted to back an effort by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) aimed at removing provisions that strip 'individuals in the United States of the federal benefits to which they are entitled,' partly with the 'creation of new administrative burdens and paperwork requirements.' She and fellow Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan (R) voted to back an effort from Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) to strike provisions related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as the food stamps program, as Republicans have proposed notable changes to the program to reduce federal spending in the bill. The two GOP senators have also raised concerns over the scope of the bill's SNAP proposal and how requirements for states with higher payment error rates to pay a share of benefit costs for the first time would impact Alaska. However, Democrats weren't the only ones to peel off across-the-aisle support during votes. One amendment offered by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) targeted states that use their own money to offer health care to migrants without legal status. States that continue to cover migrants without legal status would get their Medicaid cut from 90 to 80 percent. Four Democrats joined Republicans in backing the effort: Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Maggie Hassan (N.H.), Jon Ossoff (Ga.) and Raphael Warnock (Ga.). Nathaniel Weixel contributed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
National Post
10-06-2025
- Health
- National Post
Nearly Three in Four Ontarians Want Provincial Government to Prioritize Spending on Public Hospitals Instead of Private Clinics: New Poll
Article content OTTAWA, Ontario — Seventy-three per cent of Ontarians believe the government should prioritize spending on public hospitals rather than private clinics, in a poll conducted following the recent budget announcement of $280 million being shunted to private, for-profit clinics. Eighty-four per cent also said they believe public hospitals are understaffed. Article content The Nanos Poll was conducted between May 27 and June 1, surveying 1,017 Ontarians over the age of 18. The poll was commissioned by CUPE's Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE), which released a supplementary report on the ongoing privatization of hospital services. 'This poll shows there is overwhelming opposition to this government's plans to privatize hospital surgeries,' said Michael Hurley, president of OCHU-CUPE, which represents 50,000 hospital and long-term care staff. 'The public understands that spending on private, for-profit clinics and agencies is much more expensive, comes with poorer outcomes and duplicates infrastructure and administration. The vast majority wants our resources allocated to public health care.' Article content While the government expands funding to for-profit clinics, over four in five Ontarians (84%) believe there is not enough staff in public hospitals – including 82 per cent of Ontario PC supporters. Article content In the recent budget health care funding increased two per cent, well below the annual health care inflation of 5.2 per cent, noted the union. Article content After significant privatization of cataract surgeries, the government plans to expand private, for-profit delivery of other procedures including knee and hip replacements as well as diagnostics. In 2023, Premier Doug Ford suggested that up to 50 per cent of surgeries could be performed outside of hospitals. Article content 'This is startling given that for-profit surgeries in Ontario are twice as expensive as those performed in public hospitals,' said Hurley. Article content The OCHU-CUPE report highlights the findings of a 2024 Canadian Medical Association Journal study showing that privatization of cataract operations resulted in surgical rates increasing by 22 per cent for the wealthiest Ontarians while declining for everyone else. Access to surgeries for the poorest people in Ontario declined nine per cent. The study noted that hospitals provided equal access to care. Article content At the media conference, the union showed a visual representation of this inequality through a map of Ottawa's neighbourhoods, colour-coded by socioeconomic status. Article content 'People can't afford to pay thousands of dollars for health care,' Hurley said. 'The great majority of Ontarians reject this expensive privatization that bakes in inequalities and greatly reduces access.' Article content The Ontario Health Coalition has documented hundreds of cases of private, for-profit clinics billing patients for medically necessary services – which is illegal – and add-on services that patients felt compelled to purchase. Article content Sixty-seven per cent of respondents to the Nanos poll said it was unacceptable for private clinics to charge people for medically necessary services. Article content The union expressed concerns about the acceleration of privatization, citing the CMAJ study's findings showing that since expansion of public funding for cataract surgeries in Ontario, 22.5 per cent of these procedures were performed in private clinics. Article content Summary of survey results: Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content For more information please contact: Article content Article content Article content Article content
National Post
09-06-2025
- Health
- National Post
Ontarians Want Provincial Government to Prioritize Spending on Public Hospitals Not Private Clinics: New Poll
Article content TORONTO — Nearly three in four Ontarians believe the government should prioritize spending on public hospitals rather than private clinics, in a poll conducted following the recent budget announcement of $280 million being shunted to private, for-profit clinics. Eighty-four per cent of Ontarians also said they believe public hospitals are understaffed. Article content Article content The Nanos poll was conducted between May 27 and June 1, surveying 1,017 Ontarians over the age of 18. The poll was commissioned by CUPE's Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE), which released a supplementary report on the ongoing privatization of hospital services. Article content 'This poll shows there is overwhelming opposition to this government's plans to privatize hospital surgeries,' said Michael Hurley, president of OCHU-CUPE, which represents 50,000 hospital and long-term care staff. 'The public understands that spending on private, for-profit clinics and agencies is much more expensive, comes with poorer outcomes and duplicates infrastructure and administration. The vast majority wants our resources allocated to public health care.' Article content While the government expands funding to for-profit clinics, over four in five Ontarians (84%) believe there is not enough staff in public hospitals – including 82 per cent of Ontario PC supporters. Article content In the recent budget health care funding increased two per cent, well below the annual health care inflation of 5.2 per cent, noted the union. Article content After significant privatization of cataract surgeries, the government plans to expand private, for-profit delivery of other procedures including knee and hip replacements as well as diagnostics. In 2023, Premier Doug Ford suggested that up to 50 per cent of surgeries could be performed outside of hospitals. Article content 'This is startling given that for-profit surgeries in Ontario are twice as expensive as those performed in public hospitals,' said Hurley. Article content The OCHU-CUPE report highlights the findings of a 2024 Canadian Medical Association Journal study showing that privatization of cataract operations resulted in surgical rates increasing by 22 per cent for the wealthiest Ontarians while declining for everyone else. Access to surgeries for the poorest people in Ontario declined nine per cent. The study noted that hospitals provided equal access to care. Article content At the media conference, the union showed a visual representation of this inequality through a map of Ontario's neighbourhoods, colour-coded by socioeconomic status. The yellow areas representing the wealthiest neighbourhoods showed the most affluent Ontarians are clustered in enclaves that are barely visible amidst a sea of blue (representing the bottom 80 per cent of residents). Article content 'People can't afford to pay thousands of dollars for health care,' Hurley said. 'The great majority of Ontarians reject this expensive privatization that bakes in inequalities and greatly reduces access.' Article content The Ontario Health Coalition has documented hundreds of cases of private, for-profit clinics billing patients for medically necessary services – which is illegal – and add-on services that patients felt compelled to purchase. Article content Sixty-seven per cent of respondents to the Nanos poll said it was unacceptable for private clinics to charge people for medically necessary services. Article content The union expressed concerns about the acceleration of privatization, citing the CMAJ study's findings showing that since expansion of public funding for cataract surgeries in Ontario, 22.5 per cent of these procedures were performed in private clinics. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
BBC News
06-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Royal Berkshire Hospital's share of £4.4m funding 'not enough'
Funding awarded to a hospital for repairs and refurbishments is "not enough", a local MP has said. The government announced a £4.4m shared grant for Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH) and Bracknell Liberal Democrat MP for Wokingham Clive Jones said the cash would "not touch the sides".The government said the funding would prevent appointments being cancelled and blamed "14 years of austerity" from previous administrations for the current problems in the NHS. The hospital, on Craven Road in Reading, was set to be rebuilt under the last government's new hospitals this has been delayed until at least 2037 by the current government, which said the previous plan was not affordable. Jones said the money was "very welcome" but "not enough"."We have £102m shortfall already and it's forecast to be up to £400m in the next 10 to 15 years," he said."So, £4.4m really does not touch the sides."He said he had met with Minister of State for Health Karen Smyth about the matter."Even if they give us £4.4m every year for the next 10 years we've still got a significant shortfall," he continued."I know the minister is well aware of the special circumstances of the Royal Berkshire and that there are parts of it that are 200 years old."Chief executive of RBH Steve McManus said he had also hoped for more funding. He said: "The hospital was in a losing battle against a constant need for repairs, with 50 operations being cancelled in 18 months due to estate disrepair, including power cuts, leaking roofs and collapsed ceilings."A spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care said: "We inherited a crumbling NHS following 14 years of austerity, including during the Lib Dems' time in office, but we are determined to turn this around."This week's investment is an essential step to make our hospitals safer and more efficient places to provide care."It added: "These works are funded through the Budget, which provided an extra £26 billion for health and care, and was voted against by the Lib Dems along with every other opposition party. Only Labour will rebuild our broken NHS." You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
