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Air ambulance reimbursement bill hears broad testimony on rural access and budget trade-offs
Summary
Senate Bill 778 would require the Oregon Health Authority to recalculate and apply the National Ambulance Inflation Factor to air ambulance reimbursements every two years; supporters emphasized rural access and sustainability, while opponents cautioned about statutory anchoring of rates and cost-control implications.
Senate Bill 778 received a public hearing before the Senate Committee on Health Care, with testimony from rural legislators, air ambulance operators and a lobbying group opposed to anchoring reimbursement rates in statute.
The measure would require the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and coordinated care organizations (CCOs) to use a specified methodology — the National Ambulance Inflation Factor — to set reimbursement rates for air ambulance services and to recalculate those rates every two years. Committee staff noted the current status quo: "emergency or ambulance services are reimbursed for Oregon Health Plan members at 80% of the Medicare rate, at present."
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