THINKBYTE: Hospital Billing Practices

In an article in the April 2006 issue of "The Self-Insurer", Carlton Harker, FSA, MAAA, argues that something must be done to alleviate the unfairness associated with billing non-indigent uninsured patients at higher rates than either (1) indigent unisured patients or (2) in-network patients. Moreover, the indigent unisured patients actual pay their own bills (or possibly go bankrupt), whereas the other types of patients do not pay the bills themselves.

Does anyone know how the new PPACA law affects this situation?

We Need a National Fee Schedule

John Dante, FSA, MAAA, FCA, has written an essay "The U.S. Health Care Revolution" on pages 40-43 of the September 2010 issue of Health Watch, published by the Society of Actuaries.

His number one recommendation for bringing down the cost of health care in the US is the adoption of a National Fee Schedule, so that everyone pays the same for the same service: Medicare, insurers, consumsers, and especially the uninsured.