Colorado woman Lisa French had back surgery in 2014. The admissions clerk at the hospital, St. Anthony North, mistakenly estimated her cost-sharing at $1,337. What the hospital clerk failed to realize was the hospital was out-of-network. Because the hospital was out of network it was not bound by a negotiated rate for the surgery. The hospital could bill at its so-called chargemaster rates, which are often two to three times typical rates health plans negotiate with in-network providers.
Category: Cost of Healthcare
Another Way to Lower Health Insurance Costs
This is Michael Cannon (gated):
In 2014 … the Obama administration exempted health insurance in American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Marianas Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands from those regulations. Subsequent administrations have preserved this exemption.
If [Florida] lawmakers pass a law recognizing insurance licenses from U.S. territories, Florida consumers and employers could purchase individual or group plans from insurers in Puerto Rico or any other U.S. territory.
Many established health insurers already do business in the territories, including Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Humana and BlueCross BlueShield — each of which already has provider networks in Florida.
Opening Florida’s market would improve the quality and cost of health insurance. Floridians could save 50% or more on their plans.
Is Telemedicine on its Way Up or Out?
TelaDoc, the largest telehealth firm in the United States, saw its stock price nosedive by more than 60% in the past month. TelaDoc’s stock price is down 78% from its high last year. This is significant considering health care experts predicted telemedicine would get a huge boost from Covid and telehealth visits become mainstream. What’s behind the stock slide? Was it profit-taking by early investors or has the public’s interest in telehealth waned? By the way, TelaDoc was founded in Dallas in 2002 and funded my early policy work on telemedicine 15 years ago under different leadership.