The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Friday unveiled a plan to reduce hospital Medicaid payments by $6.3 million in fiscal year 2010 and nearly $21 million in FY 2011 to address projected budget shortfalls due to increased enrollment in Medicaid and other aid programs. Those totals include both state Medicaid cuts and the resulting loss of federal matching funds. "Medicaid reimbursement fails to cover the cost of the care hospitals provide," said New Hampshire Hospital Association President Steve Ahnen. "In balancing the budget on the backs of hospitals, the state continues to ask hospitals to do more with less. Hospitals face their own challenges as they strive to meet the needs of their patients and communities in spite of current economic strains."