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Obamacare Confusion Reigns as Frustrated Patients Walk Out of Hospitals Without Treatment
The U.K. Daily Mail ^ | Thursday, January 2, 2014 | David Martosko

Posted on 01/02/2014 3:06:08 PM PST by kristinn

Hospital staff in Northern Virginia are turning away sick people on a frigid Thursday morning because they can't determine whether their Obamacare insurance plans are in effect.

Patients in a close-in DC suburb who think they've signed up for new insurance plans are struggling to show their December enrollments are in force, and health care administrators aren't taking their word for it.

In place of quick service and painless billing, these Virginians are now facing the threat of sticker-shock that comes with bills they can't afford.

'They had no idea if my insurance was active or not!' a coughing Maria Galvez told MailOnline outside the Inova Healthplex facility in the town of Springfield.

She was leaving the building without getting a needed chest x-ray.

'The people in there told me that since I didn't have an insurance card, I would be billed for the whole cost of the x-ray,' Galvez said, her young daughter in tow. 'It's not fair – you know, I signed up last week like I was supposed to.'

The x-ray's cost, she was told, would likely be more than $500.

Galvez said she enrolled in a Carefirst Blue Cross bronze plan at a cost of about $450 per month through healthcare.gov, three days before Christmas.

'No one has sent me a bill,' she said.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testified in a December 11 congressional hearing that the federal government can't say how many new enrollees have written checks for their first month's premiums.

'Some may have paid, some may have not,' she conceded.

It's unlikely that a valid insurance card would have changed Galvez' fortunes, however.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: deathpenalty; obamacare
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To: kristinn

I went to my retina specialist today for a follow-up visit. They told me they were requiring all bills to be paid in full, even if you had insurance, because they couldn’t figure out who had coverage or how the deductibles would work.

I’m fine because I have insurance and a health savings account which will pay my deductible — it is tied to my insurance so they would have gotten the payment, now the HSA will send me a check instead.

But I feel bad for the people going into the office today, facing a $500 charge, and having to leave without treatment.


141 posted on 01/02/2014 6:48:32 PM PST by CharlesWayneCT
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To: Pearls Before Swine
You are so right. The big clinics and hospitals won't even negotiate their bills down a dime. We've learned to go to the private practices and clinics insofar as possible. They have higher cost up front, but fewer surprises after the fact.

I've been able to get bills settled at 70% or even 60% on the dollar once we offer to pay cash up front. If they can bill insurance for the majority of it, sometimes it will even be less than that.

A few of our MDs have even had the courage to sign their names to anti-ObamaCare letters in our local newspaper.

We make a special point to seek them out when I have a need they can fill. Almost always, they give us a better deal when we congratulate them on the letter.

142 posted on 01/02/2014 7:12:07 PM PST by Vigilanteman (Obama: Fake black man. Fake Messiah. Fake American. How many fakes can you fit in one Zer0?)
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To: McGavin999
Actually the main reason for overpricing is the SCOTUS ruling that said hospitals had to give services to illegals.

I'd say it's only part of the story. It explains part of why all payers as a group pay more to cover. It does not explain why insurers pay not a bit less (some quantity discount is OK by me) but a whole lot less than someone who is not in an insurance group.

143 posted on 01/02/2014 7:20:02 PM PST by Pearls Before Swine
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To: jdege
far exceeding the $500 charge in question.

In Covered CA the x-ray is not subject to the deductible but has a $65.00 co-pay but the E-R visit is subject to the deductible with a $250 co-pay after the deductible. The $500 was probably ER and x-ray.

144 posted on 01/02/2014 7:20:48 PM PST by Mike Darancette (Do The Math)
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To: Pearls Before Swine

I have seen stories that people paying cash get big discounts.


145 posted on 01/02/2014 7:21:33 PM PST by GeronL (Extra Large Cheesy Over-Stuffed Hobbit)
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To: GeronL

If they go in and negotiate in advance, sure. If you go in and get care in a health emergency, after signing to cover costs, you may get a decent deal, but you might get grossly overcharged as long as you have some money. You’ve signed an agreement to pay... without the costs having been disclosed. It’s potentially a blank check.

I have a friend in the insurance business. He said that if you were some Arab wanting voluntary surgery, you could get one of your people to offer to pay, say, 125% of what Medicare pays, and you might strike a deal. But, if you just sign a responsibility form in an emergency, they’ve got you and your assets by the short hairs.


146 posted on 01/02/2014 7:26:08 PM PST by Pearls Before Swine
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To: Jane Long

I honestly don’t think I’m going to see much difference. Same doctors, clinic, hospital, pharmacy and even insurance company...

May be a few nuisance questions to deal with...Already refused (last month) one of the Obamacare-inspired health questionnaires - said I was not going to answer any questions read from a script but would answer most of the same questions if personally formulated by the provider. They dropped the whole issue and confined questions to the disorder I was presenting for.


147 posted on 01/02/2014 7:28:20 PM PST by steve86 (Some things aren't really true but you wouldn't be half surprised if they were.)
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To: kristinn
Frustrated Patients Walk Out of Hospitals Without Treatment....Good....and don't stop till you get to Mexico City.
148 posted on 01/02/2014 7:32:17 PM PST by spokeshave (OMG.......Schadenfreude overload is not covered under Obamacare :-()
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To: steve86

That’s good. The questionnaires do sound like a pain. As I said...good luck and please do keep us posted.


149 posted on 01/02/2014 7:37:30 PM PST by Jane Long (While Marxists continue the fundamental transformation of the USA, progressive RINOs assist!)
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To: alnick
A patient told me about a week ago that her obamacare policy would be 50/50 after the deductible of 11,000 for her family is met.

That is not a PP&ACA compliant plan. Coinsurance (patient responsibility) can not be greater than 40%.

Silver tends to vary by state.


150 posted on 01/02/2014 7:39:03 PM PST by steve86 (Some things aren't really true but you wouldn't be half surprised if they were.)
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To: kristinn

How long until someone dies from this and the effing MSM refuses to cover it?


151 posted on 01/02/2014 7:45:58 PM PST by GOPJ ("Remember who the real enemy is... ")
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To: CatOwner
Somehow it will be explained in the MSM that the deductibles under Obamacare are due to conservatives and the tea party.

I already heard one Dim Congresscritter offer the explanation that, "Republican have always liked these high deductible plans, so what are they complaining about?

152 posted on 01/02/2014 8:22:31 PM PST by DeFault User
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To: ROCKLOBSTER

Well. You’ve asked and I must be honest. We had a policy they offered kind of “no questions asked..” Just didn’t feel like being denied etc.. (heard the stories form others we had in the group) So, we went with it figuring a year later we’d shop. It cost a boat load.. Or two boat loads.. Just under $1800 a month. So to the point. We saved a few hundered a month.. The reason I’m soo wordy here is I could have done the savings on my own shopping after the years end. Then came the new policy.. Bc/Bs has been good to us. They will continue if allowed I’m sure.


153 posted on 01/02/2014 8:27:13 PM PST by WorksinKOP
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To: steve86

That has been my experience with CareFirst too. Always pay the negotiated rate for deductibles. CareFirst actually told me to NOT pay any deductibles until they determined which one (payee) gets what amount of the deductible.


154 posted on 01/02/2014 8:33:16 PM PST by Abby4116
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To: bill1952

Of course, under any health insurance product, she was going to pay a lot more than the cost of the x-ray, either through high premiums, or high deductibles.

People don’t realize health insurance is just spreading out the cost of catastrophic care. Which means if you have treatment that everybody would get, it is built into the cost of the insurance.

So when the democrats kept throwing things in as “free preventative treatments”, what they were really doing is trying to force everybody to get those treatments, since the insurance company was going to price that into every policy.

So if you buy insurance, you are going to pay the total cost of every “preventative” treatment you can get in a year, PLUS your part of the risk cost for catastrophic care.

And because preventative care is always “free” under every plan, even the cheap high-deductible insurance is really costly.

If you really wanted cheap insurance, you’d buy JUST the catastrophic coverage, put aside $10,000 to cover regular office visits and small issues, and do everything in your power to stay healthy and take care of your own minor illnesses (or find cheap practitioner-type service as a screening tool).

But you can’t do this anymore. Because Obama doesn’t think that is smart. Even though it is the smartest way to handle the health care industry — it would lead to better competition and more self-control in use of the services.


155 posted on 01/02/2014 8:35:46 PM PST by CharlesWayneCT
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To: Jane Long

Oh, I know , you know , I agree.! The poster just sounded like our situation.. Clearly an FYI. It’s rare I’d say anything ( because in a thread, my point/thought is made) GOD Save the Freep!


156 posted on 01/02/2014 8:37:16 PM PST by WorksinKOP
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To: Abby4116

yeah, its based on the date they get the claim, not date of service. if you pre-pay the OB gyn first, but the hospital gets the claim in first, we pay the dr and you owe the hospital, so it’s the patient responsibility to get a refund from the dr and pay the hospital.


157 posted on 01/02/2014 8:42:42 PM PST by chae (I was anti-Obama before it was cool)
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To: McGavin999
Hospitals required to treat indigents then passed those costs on to people who paid.

You are correct. The terms for the two largest drivers of medical inflation are called "charity care" and "cost shifting".

158 posted on 01/02/2014 8:44:01 PM PST by ROCKLOBSTER (Celebrate "Republicans Freed the Slaves" Month.)
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To: kristinn

Obamacare fail.


159 posted on 01/02/2014 8:47:27 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Squantos
Hey all you hope and change democrat rat voting dummies

And also all the LIV "conservatives" who stayed home in 2012 and helped Obama foist this T.U.R.D. over on us.

160 posted on 01/02/2014 8:48:09 PM PST by ROCKLOBSTER (Celebrate "Republicans Freed the Slaves" Month.)
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