Dive Brief:
- In Indiana, many hospitals are considering are making cuts to their staff rolls though their percentage of insured patients is expected to increase.
- For example, Franciscan Alliance -- which serves patients in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan -- laid off 275 employees in October, citing lower reimbursement under ACA plans and changes in employee health care coverage.
- Indiana health leaders say the problem will get worse if the state fails to expand Medicaid -- and that the $4 billion in Medicare cuts the states hospitals on the next 10 years will be harmful as well.
Dive Insight:
Hospital in Indiana aren't the only ones who will be faced with this dilemma. Across the U.S., hospitals will be struggling to stay afloat as a combination of challengingly low reimbursement and lowering inpatient care volumes make it harder for them to survive. The next year promises to be a particularly tough one; let's hope hospital leaders find a way to cope with the double and triple whammies they're facing.