Trinity Health President and CEO Mike Slubowski Urges Congress to Prioritize Health Care Workers in End of Year Agenda

With hospitals in states like Michigan again at capacity—and the omicron variant quickly spreading across the globe—the COVID-19 pandemic remains a national public health crisis.

As Congress prioritizes its end of the year agenda, there are several actions it should take to help relieve pressure from those on the front lines treating the pandemic.

Our front-line caregivers are burned out and health systems are experiencing staffing challenges like never before. While we’ve increased our staffing spend by 12% during the first four months of the fiscal year, we are still struggling to fill more than 14,000 vacancies, including 4,000 registered nurses.

We applaud the workforce support included in the Build Back Better package and urge Congress to take even further action as detailed in this policy card to strengthen the health care workforce. These actions include honoring health care workers with financial incentives, additional funding for loan forgiveness programs, additional Medicare residency slots, and reauthorizing nursing workforce programs.

Absent swift Congressional action—when health systems are facing immense financial pressure—we also face significant cuts of nearly 10% to providers. At this critical time, I call on Congress to extend the moratorium on the 2% Medicare sequester cuts, prevent the 4% “pay-as-you-go” (PAYGO) cut from taking effect, and cancel a scheduled Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 3.75% decrease in Medicare physician payments.

The 340B Program plays a vital role for safety net hospitals to care for the most vulnerable patients. As a result of COVID-19, the change in patient mix places our 340B hospitals at risk of losing eligibility for this important program. These facilities should not be penalized as a result of the pandemic and Congress should act to ensure 340B hospitals maintain eligibility.

Lastly, we've seen how critical telehealth access has been for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of this flexibility will abruptly disappear once the public health emergency ends. Congress must pass legislation that maintains telehealth flexibility to preserve patient access and allow health systems and physicians to provide care at the right time in the right place.

These are issues that can't wait. That's why I sent a letter to Congressional leaders requesting these priorities be included in the end-of-year legislation that is currently being negotiated on the Hill.