New Maine Economic Study: Bush Medicare Cuts Undermine State and Local Economic,...( Besides Cutting Maine Seniors' Me...),Health

Besides Cutting Maine Seniors' Medicare Benefits $3.9 Million in Year Ahead, State Projected to Lose $8.5 Million in Economic Activity, $4.1 Million in Lost Wages

WASHINGTON, June 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As Congress returned to Washington this week following its Memorial Day district work period, the Maine Health Care Association (MHCA) released a new analysis finding the Bush Administration's proposed $770 million Medicare Part A national nursing home funding cuts will not only cost Maine seniors $3.9 million in essential health benefits, but cause the state to lose $8.5 million in total economic activity and $4.1 million in lost wages. MHCA officials are in Washington this week lobbying the Maine congressional delegation on long term care financing and other related issues.

According to the new study, prepared by the American Health Care Association (AHCA), the following schedule illustrates the direct, indirect and induced impact of the Administration's pending $3.9 million Medicare cut on Maine, scheduled to go into effect this summer:

Direct Indirect Induced TOTAL

Business Activity 3,961,967 977,981 3,577,126 8,517,074

Impact ($)

Income Impacts ($) 2,387,872 300,183 1,399,291 4,087,346

Direct Effect represents the impact (e.g. change in employment or revenues) for the expenditures and/or production values specified as direct final demand changes.

Indirect Effect represents the impact (e.g. change in employment) caused by the iteration of industries purchasing from industries resulting from direct final demand changes.

Induced Effect represents the impacts on all local industries caused by the expenditures of new household income generated by the direct and indirect effects of final demand changes.

Total Impact is the sum of the direct, indirect and induced effects.

Labor Income is the sum of employee comp
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