Becker’s Hospital Review presents four ways in which President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed healthcare reforms could affect hospitals’ revenue cycle:
“1. Tax-free, inheritable health savings accounts. Mr. Trump said he would sign legislation to promote tax-advantaged HSAs to encourage consumers with high-deductible health plans to set aside money for out-of-pocket healthcare costs.
“Mr. Trump would also tie HSAs to a person’s estate, meaning an account could pass on to next of kin without facing federal taxes.”
“2. Federal mandate for provider price transparency. Mr. Trump said he would require ‘all healthcare providers, especially doctors and healthcare organizations like clinics and hospitals,’ to disclose service prices to consumers prior to treatment. This could speed the rate of price transparency adoption at hospitals across the nation.”
“3. New Medicaid funding method. Mr. Trump proposed dismantling financing for Medicaid expansion under the ACA and converting the program to a block grant to contain healthcare costs. Block grants would give states more authority over their Medicaid programs in exchange for accepting a fixed amount of funding from the federal government. This means states would not be required to cover certain groups of people, such as children, pregnant women and the elderly, to receive federal money. ”
“4. Repeal of the ACA. Mr. Trump vowed to repeal the ACA as one of his first presidential acts. Bill HR 3762, introduced into Congress October 2015, would: repeal ACA tax credits, end Medicaid expansion, repeal major taxes used to fund insurance expansion and create a two year transition period to dismantle ACA infrastructure. The Congressional Budget Office estimated 22 million people would lose insurance if HR 3762 is signed into law without a Republican replacement plan. The rise in uninsured Americans could negatively affect healthcare providers by increasing their uncompensated care and bad debt rates to pre-ACA levels.”
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