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Continuing Resolution Delays $4B DSH Cuts For One Week

Analysis  |  By John Commins  
   December 11, 2020

President Donald J. Trump is expected to sign the resolution, which delays a government shutdown that would have taken effect at midnight Friday.

The U.S. Senate extended a stopgap delay for $4 billion in disproportionate share payments on Friday when it passed a continuing resolution to keep the government funded for at least another week.

The House passed a companion resolution on Wednesday. President Donald J. Trump is expected to sign the resolution, which delays a government shutdown that would have taken effect at midnight Friday.

The Senate action was met with applause from Bruce Siegel, MD, president and CEO of America's Essential Hospitals.

"This $4 billion cut—a third of all program funding—would destabilize hospitals and threaten access to care as the nation confronts a rapidly escalating healthcare crisis," Siegel said. "We must support essential hospitals on the front lines of the pandemic and reject funding changes that would undermine their mission."

The cuts were supposed to take effect on October 1, the start of federal fiscal 2021, and the Senate continuing resolution extends the delay for another week.

“This $4 billion cut—a third of all program funding—would destabilize hospitals and threaten access to care as the nation confronts a rapidly escalating healthcare crisis.”

John Commins is a content specialist and online news editor for HealthLeaders, a Simplify Compliance brand.

Photo credit: U.S. Capitol (Washington DC, USA) Alexandr Junek Imaging / Shutterstock


KEY TAKEAWAYS

The cuts were supposed to take effect on October 1, the start of federal fiscal 2021, and the Senate continuing resolution extends the delay for another week.


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