Supreme Court Rules That Hospitals Serving the Poor Ineligible for Medicare Increases

A federal appeals court ruled in 2023 that the funding formula used by the government was correct.

U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett poses during a group portrait at the Supreme Court in Washington on Oct. 7, 2022. Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters File Photo

The Supreme Court ruled 7-2 on April 29 that hospitals that serve large numbers of poor people are not eligible for higher Medicare payments from the government.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote the majority opinion in Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Kennedy. It was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Elena Kagan, as well as Chief Justice John Roberts.