News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel

News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel
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Public Hospital in Phoenix Slashes Patient Self-Pay Prices by 50% to Increase Hospital Price Transparency

Maricopa Integrated Health System reports that price transparency pays off by reducing uncompensated care and increasing business

Arizona has a new law that requires hospitals, medical laboratories, diagnostic imaging facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, and urgent-care centers to publish the prices they charge self-pay and uninsured patients for the 50 most common inpatient and outpatient services. The law took effect on January 1, 2014.

News accounts report that just one hospital took steps to publish its prices earlier this year. Pathologists and clinical laboratory managers will find the experience of Maricopa Integrated Health System to be instructive, as hospital administrators there publicly state that this was the right thing to do for patients in their community. (more…)

Collecting from Patients May Get Tougher When New ACA Financial Rules for Non-profit Hospitals Became Effective January 1, 2014

The IRS is authorized to strip tax-exempt status from ‘willful and flagrant’ violators of ACA financial rules; pathologists and clinical laboratory managers should take notice

Hospitals and other providers already find it more difficult to collect larger amounts of money from patients who have high deductible health plans (HDHPs). That degree of difficulty increased on January 1, 2014. That’s the date when new regulations of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) kicked in that govern how hospitals can collect money from patients or extend financial aid to them.

Non-profit hospitals need to pay attention to the new requirements set forth by the ACA law. It is likely that these new rules will affect most hospital laboratory managers and hospital-based pathology organizations. That’s because these new rules will affect six out of 10 of the nation’s hospitals. (more…)

To Handle Increased Bad Debt by Patients in High-Deductible Health Plans, Hospitals Are Offering Loan Programs

Even clinical laboratories and pathology groups are reporting increased patient bad debt because more patients have high annual deductibles, often $5,000 or more

Hospital executives are anticipating a deluge of new patient debt associated with a dramatic increase in high-deductible health plans. Some hospital systems have even launched loan programs to help patients pay for their share of the cost for care provided and to stem the rising tide of uncollectible patient debt.

Patient Bad Debt Trend Should Be Watched by Clinical Lab Managers

It is important for clinical laboratory managers and pathologists to understand that these actions by hospitals to address bad debt is a reminder that medical laboratories will have a similar problem of collecting monies due to them from patients who have high deductibles and will need to pay 100% of the cost of their lab testing. (more…)

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