A Disproportionate Share: The Future of Safety Net Hospitals & Payment Policies

Health Affairs This Week is off for a few weeks. We will return for a special episode in December before returning to our regular schedule in January 2025.

For the next few weeks, we present the three-part A Disproportionate Share, a podcast from NYC Health + Hospitals's Michael Shen, a primary care doctor and Chief Creative Officer for the medical education podcast Core IM, as part of the Health Affairs Pathways show that we published in 2023. We encourage listeners to check out the other series from that podcast.

Unique series were created by fellows at the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program, designed to support early to mid-stage professionals pursue an audio project and tell a unique health care story.

In A Disproportionate Share, NYC Health + Hospitals's Michael Shen, a primary care doctor and Chief Creative Officer for the medical education podcast Core IM, explores the role of safety net hospitals in caring for America's vulnerable populations.

In the final episode, Shen discusses why supplemental payments for safety net hospitals might be at risk and look at policy approach that could bolster the safety net. He interviews individuals from NYC Health + Hospitals, America's Essential Hospitals, and University of Pennsylvania.

Related Links:

• Michael Shen
• Disproportionate Share Hospital (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
• Variation and Changes in the Targeting of Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Payments (Health Affairs)
• Annual Analysis of Disproportionate Share Hospital Allotment to States - 2022 (MACPAC)
• For Disproportionate-Share Hospitals, Taxes and Fees Curtail Medicaid Payments (Health Affairs)