As the legislature begins to rebalance its biennial budget, WSHA believes it is critical to have up-to-date information on the financial impact of the COVID-19 emergency on Washington hospitals. WSHA recently surveyed all member hospitals to be able to answer legislative questions. We appreciated the quick responses we received. We are still compiling the data, but the aggregate results demonstrate the financial difficulties Washington hospitals are facing even with the federal relief funding.
We are also in the process of developing another survey to help WSHA in requesting additional state funding for specific categories of COVID expenses. WSHA is sending that survey to selected hospitals and again requesting a quick turnaround in order to meet the timing deadlines. (Tom Evert, tome@wsha.org)
