How We Subsidize Care for Low-Income People

How We Subsidize Care for Low-Income People

In April, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Kennedy, a case that concerns how hospitals that treat a large share of low-income patients are paid by the Medicare program. Legally, this decision scrutinizes oft-litigated language in the Medicare statute. From a policy perspective, it highlights two issues. First, Medicare’s means for paying safety-net hospitals needs a refresh that regulatory tweaks and courts alone …