U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announces potential funding increase for NYS hospitals (May 5, 2023)

Changes to Medicare payments could result in Chautauqua County hospitals receiving $14.1 million more a year in federal funding.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a rules change could have an estimated annual nearly $1 billion impact for increased payments to upstate New York hospitals.

He explained that CMS proposes to amend the Medicare formula for hospitals, which for years have received less than the national average for the services they provide.

The estimated increases for hospitals in the county include UPMC Chautauqua receiving an additional $9,836,225; Brooks-TLC Hospital System receiving $3,444,566; and Westfield Memorial Hospital receiving an additional $850,340.

Schumer said this readjusted number will equate to much better healthcare in the state, “It will mean the ability to have more doctors to be attracted to our hospitals. More nurses, we’ve heard about the shortages of doctors and nurses, but they will be able to be there. It’s going to mean lower waiting times for people. It’s going to mean you’re going to be able to get an appointment more quickly. The amount of money going to our hospitals is well-deserved, is so large that just about every aspect of healthcare will improve.”

Schumer said he’s optimistic the change will be approved in August 2023. He added that hospitals would continue to receive these additional amounts each year and that there are no restrictions on how the funding can be used.

Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office says 21-year-old James Meuker of Jamestown was operating the vehicle when it crashed around 11:15 a.m. Sheriff deputies say when EMS units arrived on scene, they discovered Meuker and three passengers had sustained serious injuries. Specific details on how the crash occurred were not provided.

According to a media release, two passengers were flown by helicopter to UPMC Hamot to be evaluated for their injuries. Meuker was transported to Westfield Memorial Hospital for further evaluation and was later taken to UPMC Hamot for serious injuries. The fourth occupant was transported to UPMC Chautauqua to be evaluated for his injuries.

Police say an investigation is ongoing and charges may be filed at a later date.

Assisting at the scene were the Chautauqua, Mayville, Hartfield and Ashville Fire Departments.

A portion of Route 394 in front of the institution was closed to traffic due to the crash.

The Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) were submitted to the NYSDOH in December 2019 and they are now available to the public through the CCDHHS website: https://chqgov.com/public-health/public-health.

The State Prevention Agenda is the blueprint for state and local action to improve the health and well-being of all New Yorkers and promote health equity across populations who experience disparities. It envisions New York becoming the Healthiest State in the Nation for people of all ages, and designates five priority areas:

• Prevent chronic diseases;
• Promote a healthy and safe environment;
• Promote healthy women, infants, and children;
• Promote well-being and prevent mental and substance use disorders; and
• Prevent communicable diseases.

Just as New York State assesses the health of residents, so do counties.  The Community Health Assessment is a core function of public health agencies and a fundamental tool of public health practice.

The Chautauqua County Community Health Planning Team (CCCHPT) consists of representatives from CCDHHS, the three local hospital systems (Allegheny Health Network Westfield Memorial Hospital, Brooks-TLC Hospital System, Inc., and UPMC Chautauqua), Chautauqua County Department of Mental Hygiene, Chautauqua County Health Network, The Chautauqua Center, The Resource Center, Prevention Works, Chautauqua County Office for the Aging, and Population Health Collaborative of Western New York.

The team met on several occasions to gauge the community’s perceived health priorities, assets, and needs through a web-based and paper survey, and numerous community conversations. It then examined secondary health data provided by the NYSDOH and other key sources to determine the three County priorities to address:

• Prevent Chronic Diseases;
• Promote Healthy Women, Infants, and Children; and
• Promote Mental Well-Being and Prevent Mental and Substance Use Disorders.

The CCCHPT worked together with community partners from all sectors to determine what programming interventions, related to the selected priority areas, were already being implemented in Chautauqua County. Rather than adopting new programs and activities, the local health department and community hospitals desired to embrace the concept of “Public Health 3.0” by working to strengthen the efforts currently underway and better connect community partners.  Interventions focus on a variety of disparity populations, including low-income, seniors, youth, Amish, and those with a substance use disorder or mental health diagnosis.

“This extensive review of health and social conditions in Chautauqua County helped to strengthen relationships between partners and paints a beautiful picture of a ‘Health Across All Policies’ approach in Chautauqua County,” said Director of Health and Human Services Christine Schuyler. “As with the rest of New York State, obesity, poor eating habits, lack of exercise, and nicotine use continue to burden a large proportion of Chautauqua County residents. The problems of mental health and substance use disorders are present across the County and are a focus area for CCDHHS and many community partners.”

Jodi Witherell, CNO/Vice President of Quality Services at Brooks – TLC Hospital System, Inc. said, “Brooks-TLC Hospital System, Inc. is proud of its robust Community Health Program designed to support the CHA/CHIP, and has listed the document on our website under Community Health.  Clinical staff and others in our hospital system are in an optimal position to drive the health and wellness agenda as we interface with patients daily.”

The Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan 2019-2021 provides a demographic profile of Chautauqua County, a health profile organized by Prevention Agenda priority areas, identification of the main health challenges including the broad determinants of health, community assets and resources, and documentation of process and methods used for this assessment.

“The Community Health Assessment highlights the need for people and organizations from all sectors of the county—public, private, educational, non-profit, media or philanthropic—to work deliberately and collaboratively to improve the public’s health through policies, programs, and services,” said Schuyler.

More information about the New York State Prevention Agenda can be found at www.health.ny.gov. The Community Health Assessment.

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According to the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, the incident took place early Thursday morning on Route 5 in Barcelona. Deputies responded to a 9-1-1 call about 2:30 a.m. from a home where a female victim sought help after being shot.  When help arrived, the victim was immediately taken to Westfield Memorial Hospital and later transferred to the Hamot Medical Center in Erie. She was last listed in critical condition.

Sheriff deputies say the man who allegedly shot the victim was 38-year-old Sam Reynolds of Lancaster. While searching for Reynolds, officers heard a gunshot near the breakwall at Barcelona, and found Reynolds had taken his own life.

Officials say Reynolds and the female victim were both from Lancaster NY and had gone to Barcelona to celebrate the female’s birthday. The investigation is continuing.

That’s according to the new three-year Community Health Assessment Plan that was released on Tuesday, and was coordinated in conjunction with the New York State Department of Health, the Chautauqua County Department of Health & Human Services, Brooks Memorial Hospital, TLC Health Network, WCA Hospital, and Westfield Memorial Hospital.

For Chautauqua County, other priorities to address included:

• Prevent chronic diseases
• Promote healthy women, infants, and children
• Promote mental health and prevent substance abuse

The 2014-2017 Community Health Assessment provides a demographic profile of Chautauqua County, a health profile divided into Prevention Agenda priority areas, identification of the main health challenges including the broad determinants of health, community assets and resources, and documentation of process and methods of this assessment. Findings from the Community Health Assessment were used to develop the Community Health Improvement Plan, which is available as a separate document.

The complete plan can be found online at :

http://www.co.chautauqua.ny.us/departments/HHS/Pages/default.aspx.

The Low Volume Hospital Program, which expired on Sept. 30, provides $1,027,000 to Brooks Memorial Hospital, TLC Health Network, Westfield Memorial Hospital and Bertrand Chaffee in Springville. The program actually helps over 24 hospitals across New York State.

According to the Post-Journal, if the funding is not renewed, Brooks Memorial Hospital will lose an estimated $534,500, TLC Health Network an estimated $165,500 and Westfield Memorial Hospital an estimated $67,500.