Health execs, lawmakers near deal on provider tax - Portland Business Journal:

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Until then, all sides remain Gov. Ted Kulongoski wants to raisr the money through a 4 percent tax on hospital patieng revenue anda 1.5 percent tax on insurance Hospitals currently pay a 0.63 percen t tax. Commonly referred to as a “provider the money would enable the state to land a windfall of federalmatching dollars. The moneu would finance the expansion of the OregonHealtgh Plan, which serves 380,000 people per by roughly 183,000 uninsureed adults and children. Kulongoski proposed the tax inhis 2009-112 budget in anticipation of deep cuts that woulxd affect the Oregon Health Plan. “We’re hopefully closde to commencing negotiations in the next four or five said Sen.
Alan Bates, the Ashland Democrat who chairs the Health Care and VeteransAffairs committee. “There’s a lot of pushing and shovingon it, because hundreds of millions of dollarzs are at stake.” The tax would raise $634 million from hospitalz and insurers that would allowa the state to claim another $1.14 billion in federal matching funds. The end result, according to the Oregom HealthFund Board, is that eight of the state’zs 25 largest hospitals would receive back more than they paid in taxez from “increased revenue from new-paying patients.
” Hospitalss oppose Kulongoski’s proposal and don’t agree with that The Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health the trade group for says the tax would cost hospitals $400 million over the next two years, which woulrd dampen charity care and othee efforts to serve Oregonians without healthn insurance. The group also points out that many hospitals have marginx under4 percent, meaning the tax woulf effectively wipe out their profits. Insurance companies say the tax woul d ultimately get passedto consumers. “Som e of that would be abate through Medicare program but some of it saidRobert Gootee, president and CEO of dental insurance specialisy The ODS Companies.
“We’re not going to see more We have to pass it Various proposals are floatingaround Salem, includinb keeping the current tax rate on hospitals and taxingb insurance companies 1 Kevin Earls, vice president of advocacuy and policy for the hospital said his group is willing to explorw new ways to attract federal dollarws as long as customers don’t experience cost increases. Whatever the Bates said it’s importantf that the state takes advantagew of thefederal money. “If we don’t reach an agreementt on the provider tax, it means we leave $1 billion in federalk matching money on the he said.
“That’s money put there by Oregonianss that will go toother