Health is the first wealth, however Congressional Republicans could care less. “Repeal” of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a senseless, ideological and irrational act unto itself. As a part of the ACA, Maine has been derelict in its duties and responsibilities to protect the public health. With the Governor’s repeated ideological decisions not to expand Medicaid and now Congressional republicans attempts to derail the Affordable Care Act, things are about to get even worse for all Maine patients and their local rural hospitals. Now is as good a time as any to take a look back at where and how rural hospitals in Maine will be affected by these decisions:

The Future of Rural Hospitals and the Failure of Medicaid Expansion in Maine (August 6, 2016)

There are some subjects that many would simply prefer not to talk about. That doesn’t mean however that we should bury our heads in the sand and simply hope those issues go away. When elephants fight, it’s the grass that gets trampled. When we talk about health care, we are talking about people’s lives. This is not an issue that we can skirt around or ignore.

Maine is a very rural state with a population of approximately 1.3 million residents. The poverty rate, that is the number of people who had incomes below the poverty line ($23,834 for a family of four) in 2013 was 14%, ranking 20th in the nation. The percentage of all workers who were unemployed in 2013 was 6.7%, 23rd in the nation. The percentage of households who were food insecure on average from 2011 to 2013, meaning that at some point during that year, experienced difficulty providing enough food due to a lack of money or resources was 15%, ranking 34th in the nation. The percentage of people under age 65 and below 138% of the poverty line who did not have health insurance at any time in 2013 was 18.2%, ranking 7th in the nation.

Approximately 51 million Americans live in rural areas and depend upon the local hospital in their communities for their health care needs. Their remote geographic locations, small size, limited workforce and often constrained financial resources pose unique challenges for rural hospitals. More often than not, the patient mix of rural hospitals makes them more reliant on public programs and thus, particularity vulnerable to Medicare and Medicaid cuts. With deficit reductions and a continued threat from Washington, the continued viability of small and rural health care providers remains in jeopardy.

To date, more than 70 rural hospitals spread across 20 states, have closed since 2010, and many more may be headed down the same path. Rural hospitals are facing a myriad of financial challenges, and those in states that have not expanded Medicaid are feeling the most financial pressure, According to a report by iVantage Health Analysis, 673 rural hospitals are vulnerable to closure. Sixty-eight per cent of these hospitals are Critical Access Hospitals, a designation that requires certain conditions be met, including being located at least 35 miles from another hospital. Hospital closure, as defined by the North Carolina Rural Health Research Program (NCRHRP), is the cessation of a hospital to no longer provide inpatient services. Many of these hospitals however are still able to offer services, including outpatient care, imaging, urgent care, primary care and some rehabilitation services. In Maine, there are approximately 37 hospitals, 16 of which are Critical Access Hospitals. The bottom line is that many of these hospitals may no longer be able to provide inpatient care, and in a state like Maine, this would impose significant stresses and strains on patients and families alike.

It is clear that in states that have expanded Medicaid, there has been a positive effect on state and local budgets. On average, states that expanded Medicaid in January 2014 saw jobs grow by 2.4%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that health care and social assistance jobs will grow to nearly 22 million by 2022 due to Medicaid Expansion

Because the waters are calm on the surface doesn’t mean there are no crocodiles. Already on the table is a proposal by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to reduce Critical Access Hospital’s reimbursements from 101% to 100% of reasonable costs in fiscal year 2017. This proposed reduction neglects to take into consideration the cost reimbursement reductions imposed by sequestration. Should these further reductions go into effect, the ability of Critical Access Hospitals to provide necessary health care in rural communities would be severely compromised.

According to the North Carolina Rural Health Research Program, several hospitals in Maine have already been significantly impacted due to Governor LePage’s ideological decision not to expand Medicaid. Hospitals affected to date are Parkview Adventist Medical Center in Brunswick, Southern Maine Health Care-Sanford Medical Center and St. Andrews Hospital in Boothbay Harbor. Earlier this year, besides hurting thousands of uninsured Mainers, the effects of Maine’s rejection of Medicaid Expansion was quite evident and contributed to immediate layoffs of 22 employees from the Farmington based Franklin Community Health Network. In addition, 40 full-time positions were eliminated at Franklin as a part of its cost-reduction plan, just to stay afloat. At Franklin and other Maine hospitals, Maine’s failure to broaden Medicaid is seen as a primary driver in soaring health care costs, from over $100 million in 2000 to over $570 million in 2014. Not expanding Medicaid is clearly a factor in the financial hardships of Maine hospitals. Over the next 10 years, Maine hospitals will lose about $900 million unless the state expands Medicaid.

This brings me to our local Critical Access Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft. Despite the pro-active efforts of the Hospital Board, the Administration and the Medical Staff, like other Critical Access Hospitals across the state, Mayo Regional Hospital is also being impacted and struggling for its existence because of the lack of Medicaid Expansion. Of the federal monies that would come to the state for enhanced patient coverage through expansion, roughly $90 million would go to hospitals based on their current spending rate. About $1.4 million of that would come to Mayo based on its current Maine Care volumes. Medicaid Expansion would go a long way in bolstering our struggling hospital as the hospital currently has a negative operating margin of $1 million and is on track to provide $3 million in charity or free care to the local community this year. Will Mayo be forced to implement layoffs or worse yet, eliminate full time positions?

By not accepting Medicaid Expansion and its federal funds, there remains a coverage gap for many of our poorest friends and neighbors. In 2013 the Maine Legislature voted to accept those funds, however Governor LePage vetoed that decision. As a result, 25,000 Mainers lost MaineCare coverage in 2013, including 10,000 childless adults below the poverty line and 14,500 parents making 100%-138% of the federal poverty level. If Maine had accepted those federal funds, it would have restored health care for those individuals and covered an additional 45,000 Mainers who would have been eligible for insurance for the first time. This year, the Maine Legislature had another opportunity to override the Governor’s veto but fell 2 votes short of an override.

If our society allows these wrongs to go unchallenged, the impression is created that those wrongs have the approval of the majority. Lawmakers who refuse the opportunity to cover uninsured people are telling those people that their lives don’t matter. For the republican lawmakers who say, “Well, I voted for expansion”, I say that’s not good enough. We all know that in politics, if the majority party whip is certain that he or she has the votes needed to pass a bill, or in this case, override the Governor’s veto, those representatives in that party who may be vulnerable for re-election are given the green light to vote with the minority, simply so they can go home to their constituents and say “Well, I supported expansion, but it just didn’t pass. There was nothing more I could do”. This on its face is deceptive and hypocritical. This is what happens when lawmakers decide issues purely on political and self- merits.

More is required of public officials than slogans, handshakes, press releases and a wink and a nod. They must be held strictly accountable. Legislators must not only provide a vision for the future, they must share in the responsibility and delivery of that vision, and be willing to implement and uphold what they know is right for the common good of our communities. Quality healthcare expands well beyond political boundaries and should not be dependent on the whims of ideological political positions.