WEEKLY UPDATE: 05/29/25
Following its release of the Hospitals’ Community Benefit Summary and Analysis Report FY 2023, the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy (OHS) invited the public to share input on the report by Wednesday, May 28. The Connecticut Hospital Association (CHA) submitted a comprehensive letter with comments on the report’s key findings and recommendations.
In the letter, CHA asserts that the foremost key finding of the report should be, in the most recent year for which comparison data were presented, Connecticut hospitals’ Total Community Benefit spend as a percentage of total expenses was 26% higher than the national average. The second key finding should be that Medicaid underpayment as a percentage of total expenses was more than 60% higher than the national average. Additionally, although the report notes a reduction in statewide charity care since 2016, the report should include as a key finding that Connecticut hospitals’ reported charity care is nearly 50% higher than the national average. CHA also details in the comment letter multiple factors that likely played a role in the reduction in reported charity care that are important to consider to understand the shifting landscape and context.
Bad Debt
In the letter, CHA encourages OHS to contextualize the data points, including that hospitals have increased their community benefit spending in recent years despite facing soaring labor, supply, and prescription costs, and it is because of this unprecedented cost growth that community benefit spend as a percentage of the inflation-driven rise in operating expenses has diminished. CHA also stresses that OHS’s recommended payment-to-cost ratio calculation disregards the role that hospital taxes play in supporting the Medicaid program, and, as a result, shows false improvements in Medicaid reimbursement.
OHS also recommended “Requiring hospitals to report on the value of the tax exemptions claimed, promoting transparency and accountability in how hospitals use the substantial tax benefits they receive.” CHA recently released a report prepared by EY regarding the value of community benefits provided by Connecticut not-for-profit hospitals. This report concluded that the value of such community benefits is more than double the value of hospitals’ tax-exempt status. In light of these findings, CHA believes annual reporting is unnecessary.
Connecticut hospitals continue to emphasize that Medicaid underfunding is hindering statewide goals to enhance healthcare access and affordability. Hospitals look forward to ensuring the final version of the report provides a complete and accurate review of hospitals’ community benefit expenses and includes a recommendation for the state to prioritize addressing the substantial Medicaid shortfall.
Click here to read the complete comment letter.
