Final
Economic Impact of Colorado Hospitals
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Votes:
Action Taken:
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02:07 PM -- The Economic Impact of Colorado Hospitals, Mr. Larry Wall, President, Colorado Health and Hospital Association
Mr. Larry Wall, President, Colorado Health and Hospital Association, discussed the impact of hospitals to the state's economy. A copy of his presentation was distributed to the committee (Attachment F). Hospitals are the second largest employers nationwide and support one in nine jobs, directly or indirectly. He stated that 51,143 employees worked in Colorado hospitals in 2003; total salaries and benefits for Colorado hospital employers was over $3.1 billion. He discussed other economic benefits of hospital jobs such as providing consistent employment and attracting related businesses, including the biotech industry. He also commented on the importance of a skilled workforce to Colorado hospitals and on the short supply of medical professionals which could lead to cutbacks in services and less access to health care. The estimated shortage of nurses in Colorado is 11 percent, but there are waiting lists for future nurses at Colorado's schools. Colorado's schools have difficulty attracting and retaining faculty. It is critical to health care and the economy overall that the state invest in educating health care professionals.
Mr. Wall continued by discussing Colorado hospitals' spending on goods and services of more than $7 billion. Investments in capital improvements for hospitals also have a positive impact on the economy. He also discussed the importance of the availability and location of quality hospitals to employer location decisions.
02:17 PM
Mr. Wall continued by stating that, other than workforce supply issues, the underfunding of care is one of the biggest challenges to hospitals. He stated that the total cost of uncompensated care in Colorado was $1.4 billion in 2004. One problem is that providers are paid less for services from the government which causes cost shifting. When hospitals are provided less than the cost for services they provide, the costs are shifted to individuals and business which result in a decline in the number of insured individuals. He indicated that cost shifting causes Colorado to be unattractive to employers. He commented on the economic benefits of healthy citizens. He also discussed ways for the state's hospitals to remain viable, such as providing adequate payments to cover the cost of care and access to qualified health care professionals, and to be included in economic development efforts at both the state and local level. He commented on the potential health care benefits of the passage of Referenda C and D.
Mr. Wall indicated that the Colorado Hospital Association hospitals have not been involved in economic development efforts and discussed the need for them to get more involved in economic development efforts.
Representative Massey discussed that the lack of health care is a huge issue in rural Colorado and stated the importance of regional medical centers. Mr. Wall indicated that the longer that care is delayed it becomes more expensive.
Representative Lindstrom discussed the importance of regional hospitals in rural areas. Mr. Wall stated that employers consider the location of hospitals in their site decisions. He also mentioned that the loss of medical facilities in a rural area would be hard on a community and that it is difficult to sustain these facilities due to the cost of care and underfunding issues.
02:33 PM
Representative Borodkin discussed the need for the Colorado Hospital Association to be included in economic development efforts.
Senator Tapia questioned how hospitals were undertaking expansions of hospitals if they are having revenue problems, especially if reimbursement rates are low. He also commented on how the expansion of more elaborate facilities are making care less affordable for some people. Mr. Wall stated that revenue comes from higher charges to health consumers that do pay. Senator Tapia continued to discuss the funding issues of the health care system. Mr. Wall explained that a lot of the new facilities are resulting from consumer demand and that the delivery of services can be made more efficient with new facilities.
Representative Borodkin discussed the need for a workforce development commission to evaluate the supply of the health care workforce. Senator Bacon discussed the issue of nursing homes and long-term care. Mr. Wall discussed the need to look at insurance mechanisms that enable long-term care to be funded privately. The committee also discussed the state's inability to train enough health care professionals. The problem will have to be addressed by all stakeholders.