Parish protests Louisiana cuts to medical centers

Jefferson Parish's three large hospitals stand to lose a combined $20 million from recent emergency cuts to Louisiana's Medicaid reimbursement rates, a hospital administrator said. The state Department of Health and Hospitals issued emergency rules cutting Medicaid reimbursement rates on Feb. 20 by 3.5%, and again May 1 by 7.2%. Nancy Cassagne, chief executive officer for West Jefferson Medical Center, said the cuts will aggravate brutal market conditions that have left New Orleans hospitals operating in the red since Hurricane Katrina.