Wyoming will receive $205 million in federal funding as part of the first round of awards from the Rural Healthcare Transformation Program. The program, which was created by the Republican-backed spending and policy package signed into law in July, will dole out federal funding grants through 2030.
HB 122 dictates how that federal money can be used in the state and creates a perpetual fund. The bill passed third reading in the House. The Senate will consider the bill next.
Two other bills related to hospital finances have crossed over to the other chamber. SF 5 allows county memorial hospitals and hospital districts to file for bankruptcy under Chapter 9 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. That bill will now be considered by the House.
And SF 57 requires hospitals to publish a list of standard charges for services. It will also now be considered by the lower chamber.
Wyoming Rural Health Transformation Program
HB 122 creates a framework for how the state can spend federal funds from the Rural Health Transformation Program. A Wyoming rural health transformation program will be formed within the Department of Health (WDH), plus an advisory committee and perpetuity fund will be established.
The advisory committee will be made up of nine voting members who serve four-year terms and provide recommendations on how the WDH should spend the annual distribution from the perpetuity fund. Members will be appointed by the governor.
The perpetuity fund will take a percentage of the federal money the state receives annually and invest it. According to the director of the department of health, this is meant to make the program more sustainable than the five years the federal government has outlined for it.
According to the bill, 80% of the $205 million the state will receive this year will go into the perpetuity fund. The rest will go to time-limited initiatives.
Then, over the next four years of the federal Rural Health Transformation Program, 69.5% of federal money will go to the perpetuity fund, with the remaining amount divided among initiatives.
The health department will be able to take money out of the fund each year for four outlined purposes. The amount will be whichever is greater: the total state rural health program income earned the year before, or 4% of the total funds put into the perpetuity fund since inception.
The perpetuity funds will be allocatedto four programs.
First, the critical access hospital basic incentive (CAHB) program will get 40.7%. Incentives will be provided to participating hospitals that meet the following service delivery requirements:
- Must operate a staffed 24-hour emergency department with stroke and trauma imaging capability
- Provide or operate ambulances
- Provide basic labor and delivery services if annual births exceed a threshold established by WDH
- Participate in the statewide health information exchange
Next is the emergency medical regionalization program, which will get 26.9% if it meets the following requirements:
- Must be a joint application submitted by two or more ambulance providers
- Provide a regionalization plan demonstrating maximization of revenue sources, integration with public safety answering points, use of interoperable equipment and technology, reduction of administrative overhead and commitment to community emergency medical services and tele-crisis stabilization services
Third is the workforce education individual support program, which will get 21.6%. Individuals can get financial awards for health care workforce education and training costs, including tuition, fees and stipend, if they meet the following requirements:
- Must be pursuing credentials in one of the following fields: nursing, emergency medical services, clinical behavioral health professions, or physician education
- Must provide health care services for five years after completing the approved program
And lastly, 10.8% of the funds will be provided for physician post-graduate medical education (GME) individual support. Individuals can get financial awards for physician medical education, including residency and fellowship training costs. If they meet the following requirements:
- Must attend programs that will increase the number of family medicine physicians who provide training in obstetrics or other high-demand specialties in Wyoming
- Must provide health care services for five years after completing the approved program
The bill passed third reading in the House. The Senate will consider it next.
Hospital bankruptcy
SF 5 would allow county memorial hospitals and hospital districts to file for bankruptcy under Chapter 9 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. For a memorial hospital, the filing must be approved by the board of county commissioners, while a hospital district must post the bankruptcy petition and plan on any website operated by the district for at least seven days before the first public meeting, when the petition and plan will be considered.
President of the Wyoming Hospital Association Eric Boley testified that the Memorial Hospital of Carbon County would’ve had an easier time surviving if it could have used bankruptcy as an option to reorganize debt. He stressed the hospital is doing a great job now and will survive, but the option would’ve been welcome.
The Senate passed the bill, and it is currently waiting for first reading in the House.
Transparency in hospital service pricing
SF 57 would mandate that hospitals have a searchable public-facing list of standard charges for services. It also provides fiscal penalties if the hospital disregards the requirement.
The bill echoes the Trump administration’s price transparency policy, which he passed during his first term. A similar bill was introduced during last year's legislative session, but federal rules were changing as the bill was being worked on, so lawmakers decided to wait to see what the feds did first, and let the bill die.
SF 57 passed the Senate and is waiting to be considered by the House Labor Committee.
