Once cushioned from lawmaker scrutiny, hospitals see a shift
From Roll Call, In Print — Jun 8th, 2023
Hospitals, long seen as one of Washington’s most powerful lobbying forces, are facing heightened scrutiny as lawmakers question their role in rising health costs. Once-effective arguments for higher government payments are falling flat in the wake of pandemic relief funds, consolidation concerns, and headlines about aggressive billing practices.
“The environment and the attitude about hospitals is probably the worst I’ve ever seen it,” said Paul Lee of Strategic Health Care. Analysts agree the pressure is unlikely to fade. “I definitely noticed the shift toward the end of last year of an increasing interest in looking at hospital pricing,” said Spencer Perlman, managing partner and director of health care research at Veda Partners. “Once that shift happens, it’s hard to put the genie back in the bottle — the issue is here to stay.”
Lawmakers are already advancing measures to curb payments, increase transparency, and challenge nonprofit hospitals’ tax-exempt status, signaling that hospitals may no longer be shielded from cost-cutting reforms.
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