A panel studying Florida taxpayer-funded hospitals received an analysis Friday that showed higher patient expenses at public hospitals than at their private counterparts.
Keon-Hyung Lee, an associate professor at Florida State University, used state hospital data adjusted for a variety of factors such as trauma centers and the case mix of patients. He told the Florida Commission on Review of Taxpayer Funded Hospital Districts that the analysis showed higher expenses per admission and per patient day.
“So no matter how you slice and dice it, it is more expensive,” said Florida TaxWatch President Dominic Calabro, chairman of the commission appointed by Gov. Rick Scott.
But other members of the commission raised questions about the analysis.
For example, R. Paul Duncan, a University of Florida health policy expert, said the analysis did not factor in the so-called “payer mix” of how hospitals get paid for their services. The mix, which includes private insurance, government programs and uncompensated care, can vary widely and is an important factor in hospital finances.
The commission is expected to issue recommendations by Jan. 1 about possible changes in public hospitals.
Scott, a former chief executive of the Columbia/HCA hospital chain, appeared to set the stage earlier this year for major changes, issuing an order saying the commission should determine, “if it is appropriate to convert government-operated hospitals to different governance models (and) what the process should be for such conversion.”
Jim Zingale, an official with the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida, which represents public hospitals, said his group will look closely at Lee’s analysis and at factors such as the payer mix.
