In a letter to House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders, the Alliance of Safety-Net Hospitals has urged those officials to support passage of the health care “extenders” included in the recently proposed FY 2026 Consolidated Appropriations Act.

Specifically, ASH encouraged the congressional leaders to support provisions in that bill that would extend current Medicare telehealth flexibilities through the end of 2027; eliminate Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payment cuts (Medicaid DSH) for FY 2026 and FY 2027; extend authorization for the Medicare Acute Hospital Care at Home program through 2030; and delay expiration of the Medicare Low-Volume Hospital Program until the end of 2026.

All of these programs are in jeopardy at the end of January without Congress’s intervention, and failure to address them could have a significant impact on community safety-net hospitals and the low-income and working-class communities they serve.

Learn more from ASH’s letter to congressional leaders.