| Trenton – In a widespread effort to tackle out-of-control hospital pricing in New Jersey, a powerful coalition of unions and advocacy organizations held a Speak Out rally on the steps of the Statehouse today. The group, including 32BJ SEIU, the NJEA, CWA, PBA, Citizen Action-NJ, and the WFP, demanded greater accountability in the state’s efforts to rein in ever increasing healthcare costs while calling on the State Department of Treasury to act with urgency and leadership in negotiating fair hospital prices and keeping healthcare affordable.
New Jersey taxpayers paid hospitals $2 billion more than Medicare prices in a three year period from 2016 – 2018, according to the recent RAND Report for the New Jersey Public Worker Health Insurance program. Hospital services are the single largest component of healthcare spending in New Jersey, which makes addressing hospital pricing crucial to curbing the cost of healthcare across the board.
“New Jersey workers are feeling the brunt when it comes to healthcare costs,” said Kevin Brown, New Jersey State Director of 32BJ SEIU. “Working class families are facing the difficult decisions of whether to pay a hospital bill, or put food on the table and a roof over their families. As a union, we represent thousands of workers at the bargaining table that make less than $20 an hour and when we are faced with the rising cost of healthcare alongside an inflationary economy, the fight for raises becomes the fight between healthcare coverage for our members and their families or a few extra dollars in raises. The citizens of New Jersey shouldn’t have to choose between family sustaining wages and their wellbeing. Hospitals need to do better and New Jersey needs to hold them accountable.”
National data shows inflation for hospital prices over the last twenty years has grown by nearly 90%, more than double that of housing and food over the same timeframe. In addition to escalating prices in New Jersey, there is a wide variation in what similar hospitals charge for their services – from 1.5x to almost 4x the price paid by Medicare to the same hospitals for the same procedures.
“The State Health Benefit Plans saw an enormous increase this year and the cost of healthcare continues to rise every single year,” said Fran Ehret, CWA NJ Director. “The answer can’t just be to shift costs to workers and taxpayers or to lower the quality of health benefits. We want the Treasurer’s office to investigate price increases by hospitals and we think they have a responsibility to do it.”
“Our members have their salaries posted on the internet because they are funded by taxpayers,” said Patrick Colligan, State President of the NJSPBA. “Every one of their on-duty actions are recorded on a body camera, and every major disciplinary record is posted on the internet in the public interest. We ask how it stands to reason that the costs of hospital services that are funded by our member’s 35% premium contributions and the rest by taxpayer dollars are allowed to be shrouded in secrecy?”
“Healthcare costs, especially hospital pricing, have run rampant without strong, mandated affordability measures from state government,” said Laura Waddell, NJ Citizen Action Health Care Program Director. “Earlier this week, NJCA shared a report showing 3 out of 5 New Jerseyans worry they will not be able to afford medical treatment from a serious illness or accident. 74% of NJ residents think hospitals are charging too much money. Our families and neighbors are being exploited by a hospital system with out-of-control pricing and a lack of meaningful guardrails from lawmakers. New Jersey patients and consumers can’t wait any longer for direct, enforceable action.”
“Hospitals like CarePoint in particular are a great example why we need more transparency,” said Sue Altman, Executive Director of the New Jersey Working Families Alliance. “To the extent hospitals are providing lifesaving care, we must make sure that care is high quality but also priced fairly and clearly. To do anything less is a massive betrayal of the public benefit hospitals provide.”
Despite claims by hospitals, the higher prices cannot be explained by better quality, greater losses on Medicaid and Medicare, delivering more uncompensated care, or higher labor costs. High quality hospitals with lower commercial prices have been shown to operate in the same area as hospitals with much higher prices, meaning hospitals are capable of charging less, while still covering costs. Addressing this discrepancy would make healthcare more affordable throughout the State of New Jersey. |
