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FMC: Obamacare has little effect on patient load

Jeff Barron
Reporter

LANCASTER -- The patient load at Fairfield Medical Center has remained about the same since the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, took effect, said Sharon Scruggs, manager of contracts and collections.

medical doctor comforting senior patient

"What we have seen is a shift in our payer mix with an increase in Medicaid and, of course, covered patients under the market plans," she said. "Keep in mind, a portion of the Affordable Care Act was meant to help increase the number of patients eligible for Medicaid, in which the payment does not cover the cost."

The big difference is in how much the hospital writes off as charity care each year. Last year, the hospital spent $8.1 million on charity care, down from $12.8 million in 2013 and $9.5 million in 2012. Scruggs said FMC provides care to anyone, regardless of their ability to pay.

FMC Chief Financial Officer Sky Gettys said charity care payments rose in 2013 because the hospital increased the percentage from 200 percent above federal poverty guidelines to 300 percent above federal guidelines, which allows a patient or family to have a larger income level to be eligible for charity care.

Gettys said Medicaid expansion in 2014 increased the number of people on the Medicaid rolls. Previously, those patients were charity care patients for the hospital. So while FMC saw a decrease in charity care in 2014, it saw an increase in patients who had Medicaid as their insurance.

He said all residents of Ohio can be eligible if the meet the 300 percent figure and are ineligible for Medicaid and other payment sources. The amount a patient's bill is reduced varies based on income.

"We have noticed a decline in the Hospital Care Assurance Program," Scruggs said. "This is a state program based on federal poverty guidelines for people that are residents of Ohio. However, we have seen an increase in the Hospital Charity Program, which is based on a sliding fee scale."

The latter program is supported by FMC.

Scruggs said there also was a 24 percent increase from 2013 to 2014 in Medicaid visits.

"We believe this is due to the expansion of Medicaid and more people that are covered in 2014," she said.

Gettys said it's difficult to say how the Affordable Care Act will affect charity care in the future because of several factors.

"Some requirements are specific depending on the state a person resides in," he said. "The opportunity to access a health care plan at a lower cost certainly has provided a positive impact to those who may not have been eligible for a health care plan before."

FMC is not only place patients can receive free or reduced-priced care. Gettys mentioned the Fairfield County Community Health Center, Lancaster-Fairfield Communuty Action Agency, Maywood Mission and the county health department as some examples.

jbarron@lancastereaglegazette.com

740-681-4340

Twitter: @JeffDBarron