FARMINGTON – Federal and state funding cuts proposed to save money may backfire resulting in added expense and fewer services, people at a forum here were told Tuesday.

Medical and mental health care providers, town leaders, police chiefs and others gathered at Franklin Memorial Hospital.

The cuts, $200 million to MaineCare alone, are huge, said Richard Batt, Franklin Memorial Hospital’s president.

Representatives from the Department of Health and Human Services, the Maine Hospital Association and the University of New England also attended to explain how federal and MaineCare proposed cuts would affect their services.

DHHS, as directed by the governor, has to recommend cuts to balance the budget, said Kathy Bubar of DHHS. Bubar also described federal rule changes that would affect case management of people in child protective services, parole and probation and some special education services. Changes also would require more record keeping, taking time from client care.

The Medicaid program is set up as a partnership between the state and federal governments, said Steve Davis, also of DHHS. For every dollar Maine puts up for services, the federal government matches with almost $2.

The federal cuts mean about $350 million pulled from the state economy, said Kathy Kemp, a graduate student from the University of New England. The cuts would affect communities already destabilized by the loss of jobs, she said.

With services to maintain care for mental health patients cut, Kemp said, local police have seen an increase in emergency calls regarding mental health. Officers could spend two to five hours in an emergency room with a patient leaving them less available to tend to other duties, she said.

Farmington police Chief Richard Caton raised his concern about potential jail closings, which have become defacto mental health institutions. To move patients to a facility outside the area would increase local taxes, he added.

The ability to hire and keep physicians is another issue of concern. There are 200 physician vacancies in the state, said David Winslow of the Maine Hospital Association. Reductions such as the governor proposes would make the situation worse, he said.

Forty-three percent of physicians are employed by hospitals, said Dr. David Dixon. Many became hospital doctors because they weren’t being paid enough for MaineCare patients.

After hearing concerns, Batt led the discussion toward possible solutions. Fen Fowler, director of Western Maine Community Action, asked about federal legislation that would place a one year moratorium on any proposed cuts while the effects are studied. The progress of the bill was not certain.

Batt said that unless there is congressional intervention, the federal changes will happen and went on to encourage people to contact Maine’s U.S. senators and members of Congress as well as state legislators.