HJR50 Summary

• Urges Congress to fix inequities in the Medicare payment formula that disadvantage Alabama hospitals, specifically the wage adjustment factor used in payment calculations.

• Alabama hospitals provide 81,500 direct jobs with $4.1 billion in annual payroll and have the lowest average cost per hospital stay in the country but receive the lowest average Medicare payments.

• Approximately 40 percent of Alabama patients are covered by Medicare, and the payment inequity is creating severe financial hardship with 46 of 92 surveyed hospitals reporting negative margins and three rural hospitals having recently closed.

• A recent hospital survey showed an average margin of 1 percent statewide, dropping to negative 1.2 percent when excluding the top seven hospitals, with the worst reported margin at negative 17 percent.

• Expresses gratitude for previous Alabama Congressional Delegation leadership efforts and urges continued work to ensure an equitable Medicare payment formula for all hospitals.