Governor Hassan's Statement on New Hampshire Hospital Association Economic Impact Report on the New Hampshire Health Protection Program

Statement

Governor Maggie Hassan today issued the following statement on the economic impact report from the New Hampshire Hospital Association on the New Hampshire Health Protection Program, which shows that with more New Hampshire citizens now receiving health insurance since the bipartisan healthcare expansion plan was adopted, hospitals continue to see a reduction in inpatient, outpatient and emergency department visits from uninsured Granite Staters and uncompensated care will continue to decline:

"Thanks to the New Hampshire Protection Program, more than 42,000 hard-working Granite Staters now have the health and financial security that comes with quality, affordable health coverage, and this report is another strong indication of the positive impact that our bipartisan health care expansion plan is having on our people and our economy. As demonstrated by this report, our hospitals have seen a significant decline in inpatient, outpatient and emergency room visits by uninsured Granite Staters since our bipartisan expansion was adopted. As a result, this has led to a decrease in uncompensated care provided by our hospitals, which is in turn reducing healthcare cost-shifting onto all of our people and businesses.

"It is clear that the New Hampshire Health Protection Program is strengthening the health of our workforce and boosting our economy. Not only do we continue to see reductions in uncompensated care and health care cost-shifting, our bipartisan health care expansion plan is playing a critical role in our efforts to combat the substance abuse crisis, providing substance abuse and behavioral health services to thousands of Granite Staters. Reauthorizing expansion is critical to our economy, to the health and well-being of thousands of Granite Staters and to increasing our substance abuse treatment capacity, and I will continue working with legislators from both parties to reauthorize this critical bipartisan program as soon as possible."

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