![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Hospital.jpg\")
The entrance to St. Anthony Summit Hospital in Summit County is pictured on Feb. 25, 2025.Andrew Maciejewski\/Summit Daily News<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tThe entrance to St. Anthony Summit Hospital in Summit County is pictured on Feb. 25, 2025.
Andrew Maciejewski\/Summit Daily News<\/p>\n
Colorado health care providers, already bracing for future upheaval as a result of federal policy changes, will now have to contend with less revenue this year and next after Gov. Jared Polis issued a suite of spending cuts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Polis last week signed an executive order containing more than $100 million in cuts and $147 million in redirected funds<\/a> for the current fiscal year to help close a nearly $800 million budget deficit<\/a>. The deficit was caused by a reduction in income tax revenue for the state as a result of the sweeping megabill passed in July by congressional Republicans and signed into law by President Donald Trump.\u00a0<\/p>\n Among the largest single-item cuts was a reduction in Medicaid provider reimbursement rates.\u00a0<\/p>\n State lawmakers, in their 2025-26 fiscal year budget<\/a>, had approved a 1.6% increase in provider rates, which went into effect at the start of the budget year on July 1. Polis\u2019 order rescinds that increase starting in October and through the remainder of the budget year, which ends on June 30, 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cutting provider rates means the state will pay less to hospitals and private providers to cover the cost of providing care to Medicaid patients. The change is expected to save the state roughly $38 million.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/p>\n The cut to provider rates is different from the Medicaid changes contained in Trump\u2019s megabill, colloquially called the \u201cbig, beautiful bill.\u201d Those changes, projected to reduce federal Medicaid spending by $1 trillion<\/a> through 2034, mostly go into effect in January 2027.\u00a0<\/p>\n Still, Polis said the spending cuts he made were a direct effect of the \u201cbig, beautiful bill\u201d and the impact it had on the state budget. Had it not been Medicaid, Polis would have had to find money elsewhere to close the deficit, like K-12 education or public safety, both of which were spared from cuts.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t look at it as us cutting health care,\u201d Polis said in response to a lawmaker\u2019s question during a budget hearing last week. \u201cI look at it as us delivering the cuts that were in (the megabill).\u201d<\/p>\n The Colorado Hospital Association said in a statement last week that while it \u201cunderstands the extraordinary budget challenges the state is facing,\u201d the group is disappointed by the move.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cColorado hospitals are already navigating very difficult financial pressures, and this setback further strains the resources needed to care for patients and communities,\u201d the association said. \u201cWe recognize the tough choices required in this budget process, but reductions to provider rates \u2014 particularly alongside other health care cuts stemming from (the megabill) \u2014 add to the challenges ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet not all providers will be affected.\u00a0<\/p>\n Federally qualified health centers, also known as community clinics, have a special reimbursement plan through Medicaid because of their status as safety net providers.\u00a0<\/p>\n These clinics are obligated to provide care to anyone, regardless of insurance, and often provide integrated care \u2014 meaning a patient can receive services like physical, mental, and dental care all in-house.\u00a0<\/p>\n Because of this, Medicaid reimbursements are paid out in a lump sum that amounts to the average cost of providing all of that care to a patient, which provides greater Medicaid funding overall for the clinic. Hospitals and private providers, by contrast, receive reimbursements on a per-service basis.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re paying us more for Medicaid services than what a private practice would make, but in return, we\u2019re committed to covering everyone regardless of insurance coverage,\u201d said Dustin Moyer, CEO of the Western Slope-based Mountain Family Health Centers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Moyer said community clinics like Mountain Family won\u2019t see a reduction in Medicaid reimbursements, with the cut to provider rates instead focused on hospitals and private providers.\u00a0<\/p>\n But Moyer said he\u2019s concerned about the broader health care system.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have great hospital partners who are playing a critical role in access to care,\u201d he said. \u201cI worry about what these cuts will mean to their operations, while at the same time being grateful that we won\u2019t feel those cuts right away.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n There are also other health care cuts included in Polis\u2019 executive order that Moyer said could reduce revenue for clinics. That includes a $750,000 cut to a state program that provides incentive-based payments for providers who hit certain goals to improve their care.\u00a0<\/p>\n Polis also cut roughly $130,000 in outreach efforts for the Cover All Coloradans program, which provides Medicaid coverage to undocumented immigrant children and pregnant women<\/a>.<\/p>\n Coverage itself, however, is not being cut, but Moyer said fewer funds for promotional efforts could have an indirect effect on community clinics.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to figure out what we can do at Mountain Family to ensure our patients still know about the resources and what they can do to sign up if they\u2019re eligible,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/VD-logo-white.png\"){kind=logo}
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Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signs executive orders on Wednesday, Aug. 6 calling for a special session and instituting a state hiring freeze in response to congressional Republicans\u2019 sweeping tax bill.Robert Tann\/Summit Daily News<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Clinic-1024x683.jpg\")
A pediatric room is pictured at Mountain Family Health Center\u2019s Avon clinic on March 11, 2025. Cuts to Medicaid provider rates slated to go into effect in October will hit hospitals and private providers, but spare community clinics, like Mountain Family.Chris Dillmann\/Vail Daily<\/p>\n