The Catholic Health Association last week announced an advertising campaign to push Congress and President Clinton to reverse Medicare payment policies imposed by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.
The campaign, for which the CHA already has spent $200,000, says the budget law is causing a healthcare crisis. The CHA has run or will run advertisements in the Washington Post, the New York Times and other newspapers. It also will run television ads in Washington.
In a related matter, the Clinton administration will quickly tell Congress whether it will provide partial relief to providers by changing Medicare payment regulations imposed as part of the budget act. Clinton met last week with Senate Finance Committee Chairman William Roth (R-Del.) and Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.), the committee's senior Democrat, to discuss Medicare reform and possible payment increases.
Congressional GOP leaders have been pushing the White House to make regulatory changes to increase Medicare payments. They believe that will reduce the spending cuts Congress will have to pass to pay for increased payments adopted through legislation.
