Second round of State Medicaid cuts go into effect today

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Update July 11: In an attempt to cut an estimated $125 million in costs for the fiscal year, the second round of South Carolina Medicaid cuts take effect today.

Starting today, in addition to the 3 percent across-the-board cuts from April, physician payments for Medicaid will be reduced by up to 7 percent and patient co-payments for select doctor visits will increase by $1.

The Post and Courier has details on which types of physicians will feel the cuts and links to past coverage on the state's Medicaid dilemma; read it here.

First reporting: Earlier this week, state Medicaid cuts were announced, and it looks as though they will cause some area hospitals to lose millions of dollars.

The Medical University of South Carolina Hospital will incur a cost of about $20 million in the next year due to the cuts. This will lead to a reduction in services offered by the hospital as well as some jobs being eliminated.

And MUSC Hospital isn't the only one that will feel the cuts. Roper St. Francis Healthcare estimates that it will lose about $2 million among its network of hospitals and physicians. However, thankfully, it looks like Roper won't have to eliminate any jobs due to the cuts.

Other Charleston-area hospitals are also sure to feel the cuts, but exactly loss estimations weren't provided for all of them.

To learn more about the cuts and the effect they are having on our hospitals, check out The Post and Courier's in-depth report.

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