U.S. reforms to hurt non-profit hospitals -Moody’s

Legislation signed into law by U.S. President Barack Obama last month overhauls the $2.5 trillion U.S. healthcare industry and extends coverage to 32 million uninsured Americans.The wave of newly insured will benefit not-for-profit hospitals in the short-term, along with other reforms such as reimbursement protections this year and a 10 percent Medicare bonus payment for primary care physicians and general surgeons in 2011, Moody’s said.
Longer-term, not-for-profit hospitals will benefit from meaningful decreases in bad debt and charity care due to reforms, such as a mandate requiring individuals to obtain healthcare and the establishment of state insurance exchanges, said Moody’s. Read More