ICYMI: Mille Lacs Health System CEO Andy Knutson told Kare 11 that a technical issue with a new program the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is now using to process payments is withholding nearly $3 million that the hospital uses to pay bills.
“We’ve never had something where they continuously say, ‘We have a problem,’ and they have no answer for it,” said Knutson. “We’re just stuck for months on end.”
What’s happening: Systems that may have been well intentioned to prevent fraudulent billing, are now instead disenrolling providers and not processing payments. This is happening across the state, and many rural hospitals that are already struggling financially cannot take the hit. Mille Lacs Health System says it could close in a matter of weeks if the situation isn’t rectified.
Mille Lacs Health System employs more than 400 people and is 40 miles from the nearest hospital.
