Healthcare Compliance Expert Available to Comment on Hospital Price-Gouging of Uninsured
CBS’
60 Minutes recently broke a story that healthcare professionals have
known about for years: Hospitals are charging the uninsured more than
patients with healthcare coverage. In some instances, uninsured
patients are being charged up to 4 times that of an insured patient.
“The
discrepancy, or 'price-gouging', occurs because hospitals are keenly
aware that insurance companies understand exactly what they should be
charged, as opposed to uninsured patients who generally are unaware
they are being overcharged. Furthermore, insurance companies can easily
negotiate settlements and payment percentage programs compared to
individuals who rarely have the means or knowledge to effectively
protest or negotiate charges,” says Pati Trites, a nationally
recognized healthcare compliance expert.
Medicare and Medicaid
pay hospitals $22 billion each year to help hospitals bear the cost of
caring for the poor and uninsured. This, along with other measures,
should enable hospitals to care for the uninsured collecting
appropriate fees in line with what insurance companies pay for the same
services.
“The act of charging the uninsured the highest
possible fees is not complying with the laws and regulations. This
practice is wrong. The Office of Inspector General issued guidance to
the healthcare community more than a year ago that clearly states that
no OIG authority or policy should deter hospitals and others from
offering financial relief to uninsured patients,” says Trites.
“Hospitals
charging the uninsured the highest rates is a serious issue that
demands all of our attention,” says Tommy G. Thompson, Secretary of
Health and Human Services to the American Hospital Association.
Thompson also says that AHA member hospitals (should) take action to
assist the uninsured and underinsured and therefore, end the situation
where uninsured Americans and others of limited means are often billed
and required to pay higher charges.
Pati Trites, President and
CEO of Healthcare Compliance Resources (www.ComplianceResources.com),
is available to help hospitals and other healthcare entities, as well
as patients understand the rules and regulations regarding medical fees
for the uninsured. Although medical fee negotiations can be burdensome,
they can save the patient thousands of dollars and ensure that the
hospital remains in legal compliance.
ABOUT PATI TRITES:
Pati
Trites is President and CEO of Healthcare Compliance Resources, LLC,
the leading healthcare compliance educational and consulting firm in
the country. Her professional qualifications include being a Certified
Healthcare Compliance Consultant and Officer, Certified Professional
Coder, and Certified Healthcare Business Consultant. She has taught
Healthcare Administration, Ethics, Policy and Organization, and
Economics at Davenport University in Kalamazoo, MI.
Trites
authored the “Healthcare Organization and Medical Office Compliance
Program Guide”, the only resource of its kind, which provides
step-by-step compliance guidance in areas including HIPAA,
Billing/Reimbursement/Fraud, Employment, ERISA, OSHA, and CLIA.
She
has trained compliance officers for institutions as large as the
University of California, San Francisco, and United Health Care, as
well as pharmaceutical companies, university hospitals, and large MSOs
with 800+ physicians.
For more on Pati Trites, please visit www.complianceresources.com
Patricia Trites (pati@complianceresources.com) CEO Healthcare Compliance Resources 507 W. Jefferson
Augusta, MI 49012 Phone : 269-731-2561 Fax : 269-731-4346
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