In segment one, Jim Kaufman, President and CEO of the West Virginia Hospital Association, joins us as we overview how hospitals are doing during the pandemic after the miscount of reported COVID-19 deaths.
Early in March, Health officials have identified 165 deaths related to COVID-19 that were unreported. Kaufman says paperwork flow and human error were the main causes of the unreported deaths.
Kaufman addresses the issue, saying that the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) did an audit of the deaths associated with COVID-19 and said they were able to identify the issue and made sure they were accurate.
In Segment two, Jim Kaufman, President and CEO of the West Virginia Hospital Association, says many West Virginia hospitals in our area have been suffering a “financial shortfall” of $400 million between March 2020 and March 2021.
The latest COVID-19 aid bill from Congress provides $8.3 billion for hospitals nationwide and it couldn’t come soon enough. Kaufman says a lot of revenue was lost to hospitals during the early pandemic after non-emergency procedures were shut down.
According to Kaufman, three out of four West Virginians have insurance through either Medicare, Medicaid, or PEIA. Kaufman says these insurances pay below the cost of care and the coverage is reimbursing the provider at less than cost.
At this time, a bill in the West Virginia Legislature will address how to manage the gap to help pay for hospitals. Another bill would also stop non-state agencies from enrolling in PEIA and a third bill that would require PEIA to raise its rates to the medicare level on the in-patient side.
For more information on these bills, visit www.wvlegislature.gov.
In Segment three, West Virginia State Auditor JB McCuskey (R) explains how the state will spend stimulus money in the Mountain State and address fraudulent unemployment claims in the state.
McCuskey says the state auditor’s office is making sure every dollar that goes to the counties and cities is accounted for, along with being as transparent with the public about how the money is being spent by creating processes by which the counties and cities can use to pool their money to tackle large-scale infrastructure projects such as high-speed internet and road repairs.
McCuskey also says the state auditor’s office is helping WorkForce West Virginia as they continue to receive “tens of thousands” of fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits. Most of the claims are being filed by people out of state, or even from foreign countries.
To look up any records about how money is being spent in West Virginia, just visit WVcheckbook.gov.
In Segment four, Dave Allen, the host of the 580 Live show, tells us how West Virginia citizens are reacting to Gov. Jim Justice’s State Income Tax repeal and how it’ll affect people from those who own and run small businesses to West Virginia families.
You can find the 580 Live Show on WCHSNetwork.com on air Monday – Friday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.
