KPLC 7 News, Lake Charles, LouisianaMoss Regional budget cuts affecting hospitals statewide

Moss Regional budget cuts affecting hospitals statewide

March 29, 2006
Reported by Laila Morcos

The LSU-run state hospitals, including Moss Regional, are facing budget cuts. That's millions that may leave them short of what they need to continue running as is, adding additional burdens to private hospitals. Moss Regional's administrator says, "No worries." State healthcare faces huge cuts every year.

Parts of Moss Regional Hospital are unchanged since Hurricane Rita. However, full patient care is underway at the facility. "All the services we had before, we have currently," says Administrator Dr. Pat Robinson. He says there's always another concern this time of year: state hospitals facing budget cuts because healthcare isn't protected from being cut in the state budget. He says, "we're now feeling the impact over about eight years of either cuts or freezes in the budget."

That's causing budget problems for private hospitals and physicians. You see, Moss Regional has been rated tops for preventative care. However, those needing specialized care may get sent to a private hospital. "The hospitals in town and the doctors eat that cost," he says.

Dr. Robinson adds, there are talks to redistribute healthcare money to ensure private hospitals get compensated for taking patients. But for now, no success. A better plan than what's already in place hasn't been found. Dr. Robinson says, "If you take a quarter and break it up into five nickles, and you can rearrange it how you want to arrange it, you still got a quarter."

But Dr. Robinson says rumors about charity hospitals closing are ever-present. "Again, we go through this every year. The governor comes out with a budget, and I've never seen that budget end up as what we get in the end," he says. He says it's too early to tell what will be cut, if anything. At this point, don't panic about healthcare. It's available.

The hospital system began the current fiscal year with a $900-million budget but took a $200-million dollar hit when New Orleans hospitals shut down after Katrina.