medical bills
Fla. providers, insurers fight no-fault expiration
Right now, it's beginning to look like a Florida law requiring state citizens to carry medically-related auto insurance is going to go away. The situation has prompted a group of the state's... Read more...
ALSO NOTED: MO bill directs tax refunds and lottery prizes to medical bills; Cuts to Medicaid hitting indie pharmacies hard; an
> The Missouri legislature has passed a bill which will allow the state to intercept tax refunds and lottery prizes for patients with medical bills, keeping 20 percent as a fee and turning over the rest to providers. Article
> A trade group representing independent community pharmacies continues to lobby Congress, arguing that cuts in …
Study: Even the insured face high costs
An consumer health advocacy group has concluded that despite having insurance, many Americans face medical costs they cannot afford. A new report by The Access Project suggests that deductibles and co-payments, as well as premiums, are a major source of medical debt for many consumers. Other contributors to medical debt included annual or lifetime benefit caps, out-of-network charges and patient confusion over what they owe. The report's overall conclusions square with another recent …
... Read more...Patients paying medical bills with credit cards
A new survey has found that low- and middle-income patients who can't afford to pay their medical bills are increasingly using credit cards to make up the difference. The survey conducted by Access Project, found that patients are using their credit cards more often because their employers are cutting back on their coverage. According to the Boston Globe, some doctors and hospitals are working with financial service companies to bring credit cards to patients, shifting the …
... Read more...SPOTLIGHT: Court approves $423 CWH lawsuit settlement
A San Francisco County Superior Court has given final approval for the $423 settlement of a class-action lawsuit against Catholic Healthcare West. The suit accused CHW of charging uninsured patients up to five as times as much as those with insurance or access to Medicare or Medicaid. "This settlement provides much-needed relief to hundreds of thousands of uninsured patients by …
ALSO NOTED: TennCare reopens coverage program; CDC hands out biosurveillance grants; and much more...
> Tennessee is reopening a TennCare program that gives healthcare coverage to indigent state residents with high medical bills. Report
> $11.5 million from the CDC is being granted to three organizations to enhance CDC's BioSense biosurveillance program and improve disease detection. Report
> With the help of technology …
... Read more...Clinic "facility fees" spark legal battles
Given the growing trend toward high-deductible, consumer-driven health--and larger co-pay requirements--patients are paying closer attention to their medical bills. And when they're hit with an unexpectedly large bill from a medical clinic deemed "hospital based," some are hitting the roof. Hospital administrators say that they need to charge facility fees to cover their overall operational costs. But industry attorneys say that this practice is likely to face significant challenges in …
... Read more...Aetna faces anorexia coverage suit
A New Jersey family has sued Aetna for failing to cover the full costs of their daughter's anorexia treatment. The couple has incurred about $100,000 in medical bills for their daughter's 101 days of inpatient treatment of anorexia, mortgaging their house to meet the tab. But the Aetna U.S Healthcare HMO has only agreed to cover 35 of those days, citing limits on mental health conditions that aren't "biologically based." NIMH researchers dispute the claim that anorexia has no physical …
... Read more...ALSO NOTED: UnitedHealthcare, Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati in contract dispute; Independent hospitals in PA disappeari
> UnitedHealthcare may end its relationship with the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati because the two sides have been unable to negotiate a new contact. Up to 300,000 customers would be affected if the insurer and health system can't come to an agreement. Report
> In Pittsburgh, many residents are dismayed by the shrinking number of independent hospitals. …
... Read more...SPOTLIGHT: Individual insurance won't work for most people
As more employers drop healthcare coverage for their employees, people are turning to individual insurance plans to protect themselves from high medical bills. But a new study finds that most people can't afford--let alone enroll--in individual healthcare plans. Article
