| STATE BUDGET UPDATE |
| Passage Sparks Lawsuits from Physician and Hospital Groups |
FULL STORY from front page...
After months of stalemate, the Governor and the General Assembly finally enacted a state budget. In the final weeks of negotiation, a proposal was presented to take $100 million off the top of the Mcare Fund. The PAFP presented fierce opposition to this proposal with the help of PAFP members responding to a legislative action alert and sending e-mails to their elected officials in the General Assembly. Despite our collective effort, the General Assembly and the Governor ignored our opposition and enacted a budget with Mcare Fund monies included.
In response to this action, the Pennsylvania Medical Society and the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania filed lawsuits asserting the money taken by the General Assembly to balance the budget was an unconstitutional misappropriation of funds. They argue the funds were paid by physicians and hospitals and are not tax dollars. The PAFP supports both of these Commonwealth Court complaints and has done so with a public statement by PAFP President, Dr. Madalyn Schaefgen (see full statement). |
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