This post has been archived and contains information that may be out of date.
On August 24, 2009, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied the state’s request for rehearing en banc of the April 6 order stopping rate reductions to hospitals for certain Medi-Cal services (see April 10 CHA News).
In January, CHA and other groups filed a lawsuit challenging reductions in Medi-Cal reimbursement for outpatient, distinct-part nursing facility, subacute and noncontracted inpatient services (see Feb. 6 CHA News). The court granted a preliminary injunction to halt the challenged rates for all parties to the lawsuit except hospitals.
CHA appealed to the Ninth Circuit, and also submitted an emergency request for relief pending a decision on the appeal. The Ninth Circuit’s April 6 order granted emergency relief by halting the challenged rate cuts to hospitals until the appeal is decided.
The California Department of Public Health immediately requested a rehearing en banc of the April 6 order, i.e., a hearing before the entire membership of the Ninth Circuit instead of a three judge panel. By denying the request, the Ninth Circuit cleared the way for the court to take up CHA’s appeal, which is fully briefed and ready to be heard.
