A bill that would significantly increase the state’s oversight of healthcare costs in the first state has drawn opposition from providers.
House bill 350 – sponsored by Delaware speaker of the house Valerie Longhurst – addresses rising healthcare costs through greater oversight of hospital finances.
If passed, the law would create the “diamond state hospital cost review board”. The five-member board would review hospital budgets on an annual basis to ensure they align with the state’s health spending benchmarks.
In 2018 governor carney and the legislature established healthcare spending benchmarks which called for costs to rise three to five percent annually. Speaker Longhurst says costs have been increasing nine to eleven percent in recent years.
Also – Delaware consistently ranks among the most expensive states for healthcare. Longhurst says Delaware pays more in health care costs than compared to Vermont – which has created a similar review board.
Longhurst asserts the review board will help drive down costs and result in greater transparency and accountability to healthcare costs.
The speaker says the bill has the support of the full general assembly and the governor and she expects it to pass in this legislative session that ends June 30.
But groups such as the Delaware healthcare association oppose the bill – saying it might actually curtail access to services.
Dozens of doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers spoke out against the bill on march 27th at a public hearing in legislative hall.
Longhurst said there is some misinformation circulating about the bill – that healthcare jobs will be lost and the quote “politicians” will be making medical decisions.
Next up for the bill is a meeting next week with hospitals to see if common ground can be reached. The bill will be considered by the appropriations committee on April 17.
