Westerman tours Medical Center of South Arkansas
EL DORADO — Concerns over low Medicare reimbursements, mountains of paperwork to meet government regulations and rising healthcare costs for everything from medicines to equipment, were some of the issues discussed Tuesday when Congressman Bruce Westerman visited with Medical Center of South Arkansas officials.
Westerman (R-AR 4th District) talked with Chief Executive Officer Robert Rupp, Chief Operating Officer Ross Korkmas, Chief Financial Officer Dale Maddox, and other hospital officials and toured the heart catheterization lab, emergency room area and the Women’s Clinic.
Westerman said that only Puerto Rico has lower Medicare reimbursements than Arkansas and Rupp said the declining rate of reimbursements is a real concern faced by the hospital and requires hours of time to fill out required paperwork. He also told Westerman that he feels the private option for healthcare is good for the state and Arkansas is a leader for healthcare reform.