CONGRESSWOMAN PLASKETT ISSUES STATEMENT CONCERNING HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS’ OPEN LETTER TO THE COMMUNITY

For Immediate Release Contact: Tionee Scotland
December 12, 2025 202-808-6129

PRESS STATEMENT

CONGRESSWOMAN PLASKETT ISSUES STATEMENT CONCERNING HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS' OPEN LETTER TO THE COMMUNITY

St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands - Congresswoman Stacey E. Plaskett released the following statement regarding the Medical Executive Committee of the Medical Staff's (MEC) open letter regarding adverse conditions at Virgin Islands hospitals:

"Healthcare in our country and exponentially in the Virgin Islands is in crisis. I commend the Medical Executive Committee and the medical staff for their extraordinary commitment to our community. The MEC's open letter fulfills their regulatory obligation to notify CMS of adverse conditions involving supplies, staffing, medications, equipment, pharmaceuticals, and patient placement challenges. This notification is a serious step that I am sure our physicians do not take lightly. It reflects the reality that systemic failures have reached a point where medical professionals have an obligation and must formally document conditions that compromise their ability to deliver appropriate care to Virgin Islands residents, a truth that can no longer be ignored.

"These conditions did not develop overnight. In April, I and my office met with key stakeholders in our healthcare sector from both districts. Given the escalating concerns related to our hospitals in the Virgin Islands-including staffing shortages, supply deficits, and operational challenges-my office met with hospital leadership and these dedicated providers to identify what more can be done. For decades, I and my predecessors have worked to address the structural inequities that undermine Virgin Islands healthcare. I have fought relentlessly on multiple fronts to secure healthcare equity for the Virgin Islands, and I want to be clear about the scope of that work and the barriers we continue to face.

"Medicare payments for the Virgin Islands are calculated using the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982. Under TEFRA, the respective base years are 1982 for the Schneider Regional Medical Center and 1996 for the Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital. The base year reimbursement system, which relies upon an inflation adjustment, does not accurately capture the expenses of patient care services. In the face of these obstacles, I have introduced legislation for healthcare equity in every Congress, and included in annual appropriations legislation language to urge the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to update the payment data and formulas for the hospitals in the Virgin Islands. Additionally, I have met repeatedly with CMS leadership to urge the use of their administrative scope to assign a new base period, which is more representative of the reasonable and necessary cost of inpatient services. Despite these extensive efforts, TEFRA rebasing still requires CMS administrative action that has not materialized due to technical obstacles and the politics of healthcare in America.

"During the Biden Administration, I successfully secured transformative changes to Medicaid funding for the territories. I secured provisions in legislation to change the percentage of Medicaid payment by the federal government from 55 percent to 83 percent and raise the ceiling on the total amount of annual Medicaid funding. This change directly strengthened healthcare delivery across the Virgin Islands and provided paid access to healthcare for thousands more in our community. This permanent change in law represented a historic shift in how the federal government supports territorial healthcare, providing critical resources that had been denied for decades.

"I have long-championed extending and permitting Medicaid and Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital payments to U.S. territories. DSH payments help close the financial gap caused by geographic isolation and rural conditions, which drive up the cost of care and strain our hospitals that already operate with limited resources. Additionally, I have advocated for Medicare and Medicaid payment systems that allow rural and geographically isolated hospitals an increased reimbursement rate, including Critical Access Hospital designation for our facilities. I have discussed with federal officials other programs and creative mechanisms to create larger funding for the hospitals.

"Beyond hospital funding mechanisms, addressing the economic security of our most vulnerable residents is essential to reducing healthcare system strain. For too long, our most vulnerable citizens in the Virgin Islands and other U.S. territories have been denied access to Supplemental Security Income (SSI), an integral program that supports our elderly and disabled residents with the greatest needs, solely based on their place of residence-a United States territory. Since my first term in Congress, I have made obtaining access to SSI for Virgin Islanders an ongoing priority. I introduced Right to Democracy to attorneys who gave pro bono support all the way to the Supreme Court in United States v. Vaello-Madero (a case challenging the lack of SSI in the U.S. territories). In 2021, I had SSI for the Virgin Islands and other territories included in President Biden's Build Back Better legislation, which passed in the House of Representatives, but the Build Back Better package did not advance through the Senate. I am proud to continue co-leading the Supplemental Security Income Equality Act with Congressman Moylan to end decades-long disparities in federal benefits eligibility, because based on ZIP code alone, otherwise eligible citizens in territories are denied benefits. Access to SSI is critical not only for the dignity and economic security of our most vulnerable residents, but also for the sustainability of our healthcare system-when our elderly and disabled citizens have adequate income support, they can better afford healthcare services and reduce the strain on already overburdened hospital resources.

"Following Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017, which devastated our healthcare infrastructure and amplified problems that already existed, I worked aggressively to secure federal support to rebuild critical infrastructure in the Virgin Islands. I successfully advocated for cost-match reductions and extensions that provided critical financial relief for our hospitals in the Territory. Through the changes in law I obtained in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 for the rebuild of the Virgin Islands, FEMA has now obligated more than $928 million for the Roy L Schneider Regional Hospital and $834 million for the Juan F. Luis Hospital rebuilds, creating an unprecedented opportunity to transform our healthcare infrastructure. During COVID-19, I secured additional support and funding streams to help our healthcare system weather another crisis that strained already limited resources.

"Since my April meetings with physicians and hospital leadership, I have remained in constant communication with our healthcare community. I deeply value the commitment of the medical community and the honesty with which they have described the conditions on the ground. A CMS notification could lead to federal inquiries, accreditation reviews, or required corrective action, just like we weathered in 2013. While such scrutiny is serious, it may also be the catalyst needed to force long-avoided changes. Ultimately, this moment demands that all of us set aside politics and prioritize care for every Virgin Islander. Virgin Islanders cannot afford another decade of avoidable decline.

"Our hospitals should not operate under reimbursement formulas based on data from forty years ago. Our medical staff and dedicated hospital employees should not endure resource challenges, poor working conditions, and stagnant wages, while carrying an ever-increasing burden. We need a system that attracts and retains healthcare professionals and also does not unduly deplete the incredible providers committed to serving in the Virgin Islands. Our patients should never experience diminished care because political obstacles delay necessary reforms.

"Virgin Islanders deserve the same access, the same dignity, and the same quality of care as every American citizen. I will not stop fighting until our healthcare system receives the federal support and local investment required to deliver the standard of care our people deserve."

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