Gov. Healey approves $234 million emergency budget supplement for Massachusetts healthcare

Gov. Maura Healey signed a bill on Sept. 22 providing additional financial assistance to hospitals and community health centers and allocating funds to reimburse services to uninsured and underinsured residents statewide.

The bill provides $122 million for acute care hospitals serving high numbers of low-income individuals and an additional $77 million for the Health Safety Net Trust Fund, to reimburse healthcare providers for underinsured and uninsured patients.

Additionally, the state is set to provide $35 million to community and hospital licensed health centers, with $2.5 million specifically for shared services.

Matthew Mullaney, chief executive officer of Charles River Community Health, said he is grateful for the support.

“We know that the state will do everything in its power to support what we do and the patients that we serve, so we appreciate that,” Mullaney said.

The bill comes in response to strains on the state’s healthcare system and the impact of federal budget cuts, Gov. Healey said in a press release.

Federal cuts have led to concern about the sustainability of future funding, according to Mullaney.

“We have been operating since 1970 and we’re going to keep serving patients, but it’s an uncertain picture right now,” he said.

In March, Gov. Healey released a statement criticizing President Donald Trump’s $11 billion cut to public health grants.

The press release quoted State Rep. John Lawn, D-10th Middlesex and house chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing.

“Thank you to the Healey Administration, House and Senate leadership, and all of my colleagues for recognizing the urgency of delivering critical funding to support our hospitals and community health centers,” said Lawn. “The Commonwealth will not turn away patients, abandon providers or retreat from our responsibility to ensure that every resident has access to high-quality care.”