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Certificate Of Need--Is It Still Needed?

Auntie P
/
flickr

New Hampshire lawmakers are proposing a law that would do away with theCertificate of Need process. This is a state requirement for hospitals and other healthcare facilities that want to expand or establish new medical facilities. The aim of CON is to keep redundant healthcare out of the system.

That's why Rep. Cindy Rosenwald, D-Nashua, opposes the bill. She says without controls placed on new medical services, costs will rise. She cites studiesthat show healthcare costs are higher in regions where more care is offered. "The more capacity you have simply the more care that will be delivered," says Rosenwald.

Supporters of the bill say the CON process is outdated and actually contributes to higher medical costs. Nick Vailas, who is CEO of Ambulatory Surgical Services and head of the CON board, says the process needs a complete overhaul. He says the system is not designed to address the rising costs of healthcare and that's a problem. "If someone were to come before the CON board and they would prove that they would drop the cost of care by 50 percent, they still would not get their CON," he says. "The people in the system would say we are already providing the care even if though we charge twice as much or five times as much.”

 

 

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