Today’s NewsStand — Feb. 4, 2020

Today’s NewsStand — Feb. 4, 2020

By Iowa Hospital Association|
|February 4, 2020

Featuring hospital and health care headlines from the media and the Web.

Iowa News       

Caucusing is long over, but Iowa still doesn’t have a winner
For months, Iowa Democrats fretted that new rules would produce an excess of results on caucus night and complicate Democrats’ claims to victory at this critical juncture in the presidential nominating contest. In the end, their problem was the opposite. Widespread reporting problems meant that no official results were available to campaigns, the press or the public as of 3 am CST, leaving the field in a state of heightened uncertainty. In the absence of those numbers, multiple campaigns claimed victory as they boarded private planes destined for New Hampshire. (Des Moines Register)

Health care is the top issue for Iowa caucusgoers, entrance polls show
Health care emerged as the most important issue for choosing a nominee among Iowa Democratic caucusgoers, according to the entrance polls conducted Monday before the caucuses began. Two in five chose health care, and about one in five said climate change, while fewer chose foreign policy or income inequality. The early entrance polls showed Biden, Buttigieg, Sanders and Warren leading with Iowa caucusgoers. (CNN)

Carson King launches foundation to benefit Iowa causes
The Iowa man who turned a sign asking for beer at a college football game into a $3-million donation to help sick children has created his own foundation to benefit charities. The Carson King Foundation announced its formation Monday on social media. The nonprofit charity seeks to raise money for Iowa communities hospital foundations, food banks, shelter homes and other charitable causes, per the foundation’s website. (Des Moines Register)

National News

GOP states tell Supreme Court to wait on reviewing Obamacare case
Texas and a coalition of conservative states on Monday urged the Supreme Court not to step in and hear a lawsuit seeking to overturn the Affordable Care Act. The states said that a lower court first needs to rule before the Supreme Court can take up the case. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said it was premature for the justices to take up the case without first waiting for a decision from a district court judge in Texas. (The Hill)

Hospitals clobber Medicaid supplemental payment rule as unworkable cut to program
Hospital groups demand the Trump administration withdraw a proposed rule that would crack down on state schemes to get more Medicaid dollars, arguing that the rule would cut billions in Medicaid payments to providers. The comments to the proposed rule could complicate the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ effort to increase transparency on supplemental payments, which enable states to pay providers above the federal match. CMS has been concerned that some states are using supplemental payment loopholes to get a higher federal matching rate. (Fierce Healthcare)

Managed care change stands to hit Arkansas hospitals
An initiative putting managed-care companies in charge of the health coverage of thousands of Arkansans with expensive health needs has come with a side effect for hospitals: a proposed reduction of nearly $31 million in a type of payment they receive from the state Medicaid program. The Arkansas Hospital Association has objected, prompting state officials to seek guidance from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The potential reduction is in supplemental payments designed to make up for the low rates the Medicaid program has traditionally paid hospitals. (Arkansas Democrat Gazette)

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