Federal Medicare monies from a state-run program could offer financial assistance to River Valley Health System, but hospital board leaders call it a less than perfect plan.

Saturday, January 20, 2001

Federal Medicare monies from a state-run program could offer financial assistance to River Valley Health System, but hospital board leaders call it a less than perfect plan.

"Our board will consider all options," chairman Jim Weber said.

But the Critical Access Hospitals Program, which could provide hundreds of thousands of federal dollars each year, would mean a drastically scaled-back hospital, Weber said.

"What we want to do We want RVHS, whether it’s taken over or run by someone else, to be as close to being a primary care facility as it possibly can be."

Critical Access, funded through the federal Health Care Financing Administration and administered by the Ohio Department of Health, aims to keep rural hospitals afloat.

”Ironton could still qualify,” said Heather Reed, administrator for the health department’s rural health section. ”The program allows us to reopen a hospital as a critical-access center. We have had conversations with (River Valley officials), and they are looking into it.”

To qualify for the Medicare portion, River Valley must have no more than 25 beds, discharge patients within an average of 96 hours and have transfer agreements with another hospital.

Weber said he thought the program called for a hospital maximum of 15 patients. RVHS currently employs enough staff to handle 60.

Although beneficial, the Critical Access program likely can’t prevent the RVHS shutdown.

"It won’t have a drastic affect with our current situation."

But the hospital is having ongoing discussions with the health department, he said.

”We welcome anything that would help open the hospital up,” Weber said.

Like other Ohio hospitals that have closed, River Valley blamed its problems on declining use of hospital services and decreasing reimbursements from Medicaid and Medicare, which contributed to a $4 million revenue loss last year.

The Critical Access Hospitals Program allows small hospitals to collect full Medicare reimbursements.

”In general, you are looking at $100,000 to 700,000 a year in (Medicare) reimbursements,” Reed said. ”It is enough for a smaller rural hospital to stay open.”

Community Memorial Hospital in Defiance County, Twin City Hospital in Tuscarawas County and Paulding County Hospital have been certified and are due for full Medicare reimbursements.

Susan Mack, director of administrative services at Community Memorial, said the program lets her small hospital operate in the black. The hospital may receive as much as $400,000 this year in Medicare reimbursements.

”We weren’t really in financial trouble,” she said. ”But because we are a very small hospital, there are financial issues. ”We are looking ahead to make sure we maintain financial stability and stay independent. That’s very important to us.”

Greenfield Area Medical Center in Highland County and Lodi Community Hospital in Medina County have applied for critical-access status.

”We are not going to make any money on this – this would help us break even,” said Mark Marchetti, Greenfield’s chief executive officer. ”If we closed, it would have a significant impact on our community.”

<I>The Associated Press contributed to this story.