CUT IN PAYMENTS:

In a decision that could cost the state millions of dollars, a judge said the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation did not follow state procedures when it cut payments to hospitals for treating injured workers.

The bureau announced it was cutting its rates by $50 million in August to match more closely with hospitals’ actual costs. The Ohio Hospital Association, which represents 170 hospitals and 40 health systems, said the ruling by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Charles A. Schneider gives the group a chance to argue against the rate cut.

Schneider ruled that the bureau should have sought approval for a cut from the Joint Committee on Agency Rule and Review. The hospitals sued the bureau, saying the cuts would force patients to wait longer for care and could eliminate some care altogether.

The state plans to appeal the ruling. The reduced rates, which took effect Oct. 1, will hold for now, and if the bureau loses its appeal and the new fee schedule is thrown out, the state will repay the hospitals, bureau spokesman Jeremy Jackson said.

The bureau cut hospital reimbursement rates by 55 percent for inpatient services and 50 percent for outpatient procedures. Gov. Bob Taft ordered the cuts after The Columbus Dispatch reported that hospitals were making an average 50 percent profit on workers’ compensation reimbursements.