Medicare Is Abandoning Pennsylvania Patients
In Pennsylvania, inflation soared higher than 9% this past year, raising costs across the entire economy, including in healthcare. In addition, wages continue to grow. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, wages and salaries for private workers nationwide increased 4.6% for the 12-month period ending June 2023. In the healthcare sector, these trends are creating a crisis where providers cannot afford to retain staff to care for their patients.
Since most healthcare providers are primarily funded through Medicare reimbursements, it is incumbent on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that administers Medicare, to provide adequate funding so that healthcare providers can successfully compete for talent. But that’s not what’s happening. In fact, Medicare funding from CMS is largely drying up across the board.
Pennsylvania is bearing the brunt of these nationwide trends. According to the Mercer consulting firm, Pennsylvania has the largest disparity between vacancies and supply of nurses. The state ranks third from the bottom in supply of lower-level healthcare workers. The pool of healthcare workers nationwide is shrinking.
This shortfall is affecting all patients, but especially those who are on dialysis, who require far more treatment time than most other patients. They are facing understaffed centers and an overall reduction in care quality.
Approximately 30,000 Pennsylvanians suffer from End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), otherwise known as kidney failure. Of those, 20,000 rely on dialysis to survive. The cause for rising rates of kidney failure likely lies in high rates of diabetes and high blood pressure. Pennsylvania will continue to be vulnerable to these concerning trends. One in ten Pennsylvanians is currently living with diabetes; one in three is living with high blood pressure.
Pennsylvanians with ESRD depend on dialysis treatment to manage their condition. But Medicare is proposing to boost funding for dialysis centers by less than 2%. Such stinginess is unfortunately typical of how CMS treats medical staff.
Today, Pennsylvania’s dialysis treatment centers experience major staffing shortages, failing equipment, and reductions in working hours. Some of our centers are closing their doors entirely, forcing patients to travel farther to receive life-saving care. Centers are handling more patients with fewer resources. These troubling trends will only accelerate, leaving patients with less access to care. For dialysis patients, already among the most vulnerable members of our population and disproportionately lower-income, this is a stunning abandonment.
Pennsylvania patients are resilient and optimistic in the face of significant challenges, and their providers are doing everything they can to help them. Yet CMS is pulling the rug out from under providers by stripping them of critical resources.
CMS can and should increase its reimbursements for healthcare providers. It’s not too late for the agency to change course.
