McGorty & Perillo Offer Support to Hospitals in Hostile Budget Environment
Area lawmakers and town officials assembled at St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport on Thursday for their annual legislative breakfast. At the event, State Representatives Jason Perillo (R-113) and Ben McGorty (R-122) reaffirmed their support for St. Vincent’s Hospital and other community hospitals throughout Connecticut in the face of an escalating hospital tax, reduced Medicaid reimbursement rates and new regulatory burdens proposed by Governor Malloy, and advanced in HB 6824.
“The governor has been shaking down the state’s hospitals since his administration began,” said Rep. Perillo. “The governor originally proposed the new hospital tax in order to take advantage of federal tax dollars that result in a net gain to the state, and hospitals were told they would be made whole. That isn’t what has happened. Instead, the state is keeping the money, and the governor wants more.”
Rep. Perillo and Rep. McGorty listen during the St. Vincent’s Medical Center legislative breakfast.
“Connecticut’s hospitals have already been socked with $550 million in cuts from the last budget,’ said Rep. McGorty. “Our system of hospitals simply can’t sustain this level of over-taxation without the quality of care and service to those in need being adversely impacted.”
Under the governor’s proposed biennial budget hospitals will be taxed at an effective 37.4 percent rate. The legislators noted that when you consider that the corporate tax rate in Connecticut is 9 percent, it illustrates how our hospitals are being abused. They pointed out that St. Vincent’s alone had provided over $56 million in community support just last year, but were forced to close a school serving at-risk youth at their Behavioral Health campus.
“Ben Barnes, the governor’s budget chief at the Office of Police and Management, was asked earlier this year at the Finance Committee why the governor is taxing hospitals,” said Rep Perillo. “His glib response was that it was like asking why you rob banks- that’s where the money is. Unfortunately, going ‘where the money is’ is in many cases taking away from people who are the neediest in our communities, and crippling the ability of our hospitals to help them.”
“The governor is also looking to further hamstring our system of hospitals with new regulatory burdens that will make it harder for hospitals to provide good care,” added Rep. McGorty.
The governor’s budget bill, HB 6824 remains before the legislature’s Appropriations Committee. This session of the Connecticut General Assembly will conclude at midnight, June 3rd.