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Bill would move hospital supplemental payment deadline 10 days later to allow state processing; DPHHS urges passage
Summary
House Bill 474 would delay the date the Department of Public Health and Human Services must make supplemental hospital payments by 10 days to allow staff to validate and process large payments within the state's accounting system limits; DPHHS said there is no fiscal impact but current system limitations create timing pressure.
Representative Jane Gillette opened House Bill 474, which would push the date by 10 days for the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) to issue supplemental Medicaid hospital payments.
Don Holmlund, Hospital and Physician Services Bureau Chief at DPHHS, told the committee that since a May 5 deadline was adopted in 2019 the total supplemental payments have grown from roughly $60 million to approximately $400 million annually, and the statewide accounting system (SABER/Savers) has daily payout thresholds that limit how much the state treasury will push out in a single day. Holmlund and Jean Hermanson, chief financial manager for Medicaid programs at DPHHS, said the additional 10 days would give the department adequate time to validate calculations and distribute accurate payments without hitting daily payout limits.
Senators asked whether agencies have discussed modifying the statewide accounting thresholds; Hermanson said the payout limit is a factor and that the department has not engaged in detailed conversations to change system limits but noted limits exist for treasury payout security. Representative Gillette closed and the committee moved to concur with the bill during executive action.
