Florida hospitals that treat uninsured patients could lose billions of dollars in funding, if the GOP-led legislature does not expand Medicaid, warns Florida Legal Services, a nonprofit legal advocate for the poor.
As reported by the Miami Herald, the financial impact would mostly felt on “safety net” hospitals statewide, and in Miami-Dade, particularly on the Jackson Health System. It is estimated that Jackson could lose more than $570 million a year.
Other hospitals that could lose funding include University of Miami Hospital and Mount Sinai Medical Center, which could total $60 million annually. Hospitals in Broward, Palm Beach, and Monroe counties could lose more than $500 million in annual federal funding.
If Florida legislators did accept the government’s offer to spend $5 billion a year to expand Medicaid, an estimated 760,000 Floridians would get health insurance and the new revenue would more than offset the anticipated loss of federal funding for hospitals that treat many uninsured patients, according to Florida Legal Services, the Herald also reported.
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