Scott braces for Medicaid cuts to LSU BMC
Published 9:41 pm Thursday, July 19, 2012
On Friday, Gov. Bobby Jindal announced more than $550 million in cuts to Medicaid, and nearly two thirds of the budget reductions, $329 million, will be to hospitals and clinics in the LSU system.
Early this week Kurt Scott, LSU Bogalusa Medical Center CEO, said he didn’t yet know what the sweeping changes would mean to the local hospital, which is an anchor in the community and a major component in the plans for Building a Better Bogalusa.
Scott said that LSU Health System leaders were meeting to develop possible “scenarios and actions.”
“I think they’re looking at options,” he said. “They would ultimately have to bring something back to the board for a decision. Nothing has come out as of yet.”
Scott said the initial focus is on the overall system.
“I think they want to preserve the core training of health providers, and I think they recognize that they can’t make cuts of 15 percent or close facilities without legislative approval,” he said. “What it means here, I do not know.”
Scott said he might have more information about the effects on LSUBMC by late in the week.