Nurses blast Bush restrictions on Medicaid coverage

The membership of the Minnesota Nurses Association blasted President George W. Bush for his latest move to allow managed care organizations to limit and restrict coverage of emergency services for Medicaid recipients.

‘This is simply bad judgment, bad government policy, and bad medicine,’ said Erin Murphy, executive director of MNA. ‘By denying payment for emergency care, we are only shifting the burden to already stressed hospitals.’

Murphy points out that the move will not actually save money in the health care system, but will merely shift the costs from Medicaid hospitals.

Hospitals and the nurses and physicians who staff them are ethically and legally obligated to treat all individuals seeking emergency care. Hospitals assume the cost of treating those patients regardless of reimbursement. ‘If emergency room care is provided, the payment structure ought to cover it. The Bush policy does little more than pull the economic rug out from underneath hospitals,’ stated Murphy.

‘There is a better way to reduce emergency room visits and the corresponding costs to Medicaid but it requires a more insightful remedy,’ she added. A more appropriate response from the perspective of the state’s nurses is the continued support of community-based clinics with extended hours and skilled primary care providers.

‘People go to emergency rooms because they have already limited choices,’ said Murphy. ‘Let’s direct funding to support cost-effective care. If we invest in community health clinics, focusing on preventive care with culturally astute staff, we will be rewarded with an infinitely more economical system,’ added Murphy.

With more than 16,500 members, MNA is the leading organization for registered nurses in the Midwest and is among the oldest and largest representatives of RNs for collective bargaining in the nation.

For more information

Visit the MNA website, www.mnnurses.org