The first part of the problem was human error, the second problem is not. In fact you might argue it is intentionally a part of the billing system.
Whether it is or not, it still causes me great anguish. Bedside care givers, be they phlebotomist, dietitians, x-ray techs or nurses all try hard to provide quality care. But it seems to me that once the patient is discharged the billing and coding department have little regard for patient's well being.
That is a pretty bold statement, but let me explain. I have auditing quite a few hospital and medical bills and frankly I am surprised at the blatant excesses.
As we explore bills in the coming weeks, I will show you how the bills are worded and set up. It is not with ease of understanding upper most.
Here is a quote that aired on the CBS News 60 Minutes program. It comes from Carmela Coyle of the American Hospital Association. "Actually, what hospitals charge for a service is the same for everybody, whether they have insurance or not. What's confusing for everybody is that what a person ends up paying in this country can be very different."
So to put it another way, a portable chest x-ray costs the same for everybody in the country. But we might pay different amounts?
This just one of the confusing parts of medical billing and reimbursement. And that is what I mean by being built into the system.
Here is how it works in a nutshell. A hospital has a "charge master" that is a giant list of prices for all services and supplies provided by the hospital. So when a patient is billed for a service the charge master is consulted. However, you as a patient may receive a discount on the full Charge Master price as listed.
When was the last time you were able to compare prices for hospital costs? Can you call ahead for a realistic cost for an appendectomy? It would be very difficult to do so. That is why Dr. Gerald Anderson of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health says hospitals have no reason to control prices. Hopefully that will change in the future.
Dr. Anderson knows about such things, after all he helped draft the rules Medicare uses for reimbursements for hospitals. And why can this happen, according to Dr. Anderson, "... essentially, they can get away with it."
But the times they are a changing, because like taxes, everyone at some point in their life is going to get a hospital or medical bill. And in this case it happened to Richard Clarke. And because it did, he began the Patient Friendly Billing project.
That will be the basis for our next articles. What Richard Clarke has done to help us all.
Whether it is or not, it still causes me great anguish. Bedside care givers, be they phlebotomist, dietitians, x-ray techs or nurses all try hard to provide quality care. But it seems to me that once the patient is discharged the billing and coding department have little regard for patient's well being.
That is a pretty bold statement, but let me explain. I have auditing quite a few hospital and medical bills and frankly I am surprised at the blatant excesses.
As we explore bills in the coming weeks, I will show you how the bills are worded and set up. It is not with ease of understanding upper most.
Here is a quote that aired on the CBS News 60 Minutes program. It comes from Carmela Coyle of the American Hospital Association. "Actually, what hospitals charge for a service is the same for everybody, whether they have insurance or not. What's confusing for everybody is that what a person ends up paying in this country can be very different."
So to put it another way, a portable chest x-ray costs the same for everybody in the country. But we might pay different amounts?
This just one of the confusing parts of medical billing and reimbursement. And that is what I mean by being built into the system.
Here is how it works in a nutshell. A hospital has a "charge master" that is a giant list of prices for all services and supplies provided by the hospital. So when a patient is billed for a service the charge master is consulted. However, you as a patient may receive a discount on the full Charge Master price as listed.
When was the last time you were able to compare prices for hospital costs? Can you call ahead for a realistic cost for an appendectomy? It would be very difficult to do so. That is why Dr. Gerald Anderson of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health says hospitals have no reason to control prices. Hopefully that will change in the future.
Dr. Anderson knows about such things, after all he helped draft the rules Medicare uses for reimbursements for hospitals. And why can this happen, according to Dr. Anderson, "... essentially, they can get away with it."
But the times they are a changing, because like taxes, everyone at some point in their life is going to get a hospital or medical bill. And in this case it happened to Richard Clarke. And because it did, he began the Patient Friendly Billing project.
That will be the basis for our next articles. What Richard Clarke has done to help us all.
About the Author:
We are in the business of auditing hospital and medical bills for errors and overcharges. Let Southwest Medical Bill Review help you reduce your medical bill.
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