HOSPITALS RECOUP $2M IN LOST COVID REVENUES FROM PROVINCE
Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com
MUSKOKA — Local hospitals, which have struggled for decades to make year-ends meet, will get a special one-time COVID cash injection to help the Bracebridge and Huntsville sites recoup lost pandemic revenue, the province said today.
The Ontario government announced Friday that is it giving Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare (MAHC) $2,001,899.68 extra this year.
They say in a release that it’s part of a $572.3 million investment to reimburse hospitals by establish “financial stability and support continued high-quality patient care.”
“This funding will ensure that Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare can continue to provide the high-quality care that people in Parry Sound–Muskoka need and deserve. Hospitals were hit hard by the pandemic, but I am pleased that our government is investing in medium-sized hospitals like MAHC so they can recover from financial pressures and prepare for the future,” said MPP Norman Miller.
To Ministry of Health says it helps address fiscal challenges and reimburse qualifying portions of losses that occurred not only through direct costs, but also through the loss of revenue from things like co-payments for private rooms and the reduction of retail services.
“We’re grateful to Mr. Miller, the Ministry of Health and Central Region Ontario Health for their continued support,” Vickie Kaminski, MAHC’s interim president and CEO, added in he release.
In September 2021, the government made a $7,712,500 investment in Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare as part of $696.6 million allocated to help strengthen the financial stability of public hospitals, with a focus on small and medium sized hospitals.
These funding announcements are part of the province’s overall investment of over $1.2 billion to help hospitals recover from financial pressures created and worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, says the release.
It says the government addressed the historical underfunding of small and medium-sized hospitals by increasing the base funding to hospitals across the province by a minimum of 1% in the 2021 budget and by 3% in the 2020 budget.
Previously, hospitals had to request additional funds each year and were never guaranteed approval.
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