RICHMOND, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Saying they’re “deeply disturbed”, the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association has released a statement saying the Senate “approach” in the budget reconciliation bill “would cost Virginia hospitals $2-billion annually in essential funding that helps them sustain their operations, employ people in the Commonwealth, and care for people in their moment of need”. The statement says “severe Medicaid cuts… jeopardize the stability and survival of hospitals, pose real harm to access care for hundreds of thousands of Virginians, and significantly weaken our economy and employment”.

VHHA is now urging the House of Representatives to mitigate. “Given the available options, the U.S. House reconciliation legislation is the better approach to accomplish the President’s tax-cutting objectives while still preserving our health care delivery system and health safety net.”

The statement says the Senate plan is financially devastating to hospitals, and “it is likely that several hospitals, including those serving rural parts of Virginia, could end up closing in that scenario”.

The Virginia Hospital and Health Care Association has 26 member health systems, representing 113 community, psychiatric, rehabilitation, and specialty hospitals through Virginia.