Children's President James M. Anderson at White House Meeting Today; President Clinton's Budget to Help Level Funding Field For Children's Training Hospitals
CINCINNATI -- James M. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati, was one of about 30 CEOs of children's teaching hospitals to meet at the White House today with First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.
The First Lady announced that the Clinton Administration has included in its FY 2000 budget federal funding for pediatric training programs at independent children's teaching hospitals.
"Our current system of financing physician training relies predominately on Medicare, thus shortchanging children's hospitals," says Anderson. "By including federal funding for pediatric training at children's teaching hospitals in its budget, the Clinton administration is taking an important step in ensuring our pediatric workforce of the 21st century."
Adult teaching hospitals receive on average $76,000 per doctor from the federal government for training. Independent children's teaching hospitals that do not share a Medicare provider number with a larger institution receive on average about $400 per resident, because they take care of few Medicare patients. Children's hospitals absorb those unreimbursed costs, which has become increasingly harder to afford in the managed care environment.
Freestanding children's hospitals represent less than one percent of all hospitals, but they train nearly 30 percent of pediatricians and most pediatric subspecialists. With 121 pediatric residents in five different programs, Children's Hospital Medical Center's program is one of the largest within a single institution in the United States.
Cincinnati Children's believes that its strong commitment to educating tomorrow's healthcare practitioners enhances its patient-care program. "By training physicians and other healthcare professionals, we not only create a stimulating environment that attracts the best of today's care givers, we also shape the future of health care," says Anderson.
Contact Information
Jim Feuer,
jfeuer@chmcc.org
