Posted on 05/05/2015 11:50:10 AM PDT by sheikdetailfeather
Gov. Rick Scott issues executive order to look at hospitals' books
TALLAHASSEE – Gov. Rick Scott issued an executive order Tuesday calling for a panel to look at the finances, political contributions, lobbying efforts and quality and cost of care provided at hospitals funded with taxpayer money.
The Commission on Healthcare and Hospital Funding will consist of members appointed entirely by Scott.
The move comes after a stalemate between the House and the Senate over healthcare spending led to the end of the legislative session last week without any of his priorities accomplished. Scott’s goals of $673 million in tax cuts, increased K-12 education spending and frozen higher education tuition fees are in limbo since the chambers could not agree on a budget.
Senators insist that Medicaid expansion be a part of budget talks, while House Republicans adamantly refuse to discuss it. Also looming is the end of a separate $2.2 billion Medicaid program - $1.3 billion of which is federal money – on June 30. The Low Income Pool pays hospitals for care for the poor and uninsured, and many hospitals say they will have to cut back services if it is not replaced. Senators say an answer from the federal government about the future of LIP is needed, or their alternative Medicaid expansion plan needs to be in place to make up for the lost funds.
(Excerpt) Read more at orlandosentinel.com ...
They live off the fat of the land.
I heard the local news saying Florida Hospital and the insurance companies were all for Obamacare, so it is going to be a proctology exam now on these people.
What with all the illegals and people out of work these days, I can't believe hospitals aren't capable of just eating all the costs related to these groups medical care. /Sarcasim
And if they do, why should anyone have health insurance?
Start with ALL Hospitals/Medical Centers/Clinics in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties(Democrat and Sodomite SEWERS)!
I can’t imagine an insurance company thinking Obamacare was a great idea. I believe many of them did, none the less.
We’re headed toward single payer. Do the insurance companies grasp what that means for them?
Hospitals probably saw it as a way for them to avoid having to scramble to find revenue for indigents, illegals, and other people unable to pay for services.
Here again, I don’t think Obamacare will be good for hospitals in the long run.
The government doesn’t want to pay for services. That being the case, with the wave of a big government hand, it reduces the fees it will pay for services rendered.
I’m not sure I want to have services provided by an entity that is being squeezed out of existence by a Communist power play.
That’s all we’re talking about here.
Folks, those of you who think hospitals are great big money grabbing enterprises, you’re wrong.
I see folks think that a big item on a bill is actually being paid. Generally it isn’t.
The government and private insurance companies today pay based on (DRGs) Diagnostic Related Groups. If you go into the hospital for a certain diagnosis, the government and insurance companies are on record that they will only pay “X” amount of dollars for the admission and stay.
What itemized bills show, are not paid according to the itemization. One payment based on a preset fee is all they will be paid.
If a person is admitted for pneumonia, it may be $6,250. (just an example, not a reasoned current figure)
If a person is admitted for angina, it may be $12,500. (just an example, not a reasoned current figure)
Whatever the DRG related group is approved for, that’s what the hospital gets. If a complication arises, the hospital eats it.
I know of one instance where an indigent patient was admitted to a hospital. That patient refused to leave. He was in the hospital for over six months, and the hospital ate hundreds of thousands of services and fees.
The pigs will be squealing again.
Yes indeed as Scott was barely one step ahead of federal indictment for Medicare fraud when he was the CEO of Columbia/HCA back in the 90's. If anyone can spot fraud or other gaming of the system it would be Scott. You have got to give him credit though looking out of the state's finances.
I worked in the healthcare environment for over 30 years.
I wasn’t in the revenue end of it, but I was interested enough that I paid attention when such matters were discussed. I picked up quite a bit.
People feel vulnerable when they need medical care. They surmise that the people providing them service can charge whatever they want, and come to the conclusion “They’re rich”. It doesn’t work out that way.
I worked for a closed door pharmacy. The state of California changed it’s revenue reimbursements scheme. When it did, it was very vague about how medical providers could submit claims. The general claims weren’t that hard to figure out, but there were lots of claims that weren’t easy to submit.
Trying to get a straight answer to reasoned questions about how to facilitate reimbursements was nearly impossible for months at a time. The state’s incentive was to string the entity along and hope they would give up. It had no interest in helping facilitate the process, it drug it’s feet as long as it could.
Meanwhile the service provider was having to meet salaries and pay for supplies and other cost related to doing business.
Most people don’t know that state and government agencies, and even private insurers can and do delay payments. I’ve seen situations where payments were delayed up to ninety days across the board by some payer agencies.
I wonder how many FReepers could go ninety days before getting their next paycheck if their employer just up and decided to implement a delay in payments?
“Yes indeed as Scott was barely one step ahead of federal indictment for Medicare fraud when he was the CEO of Columbia/HCA back in the 90’s. If anyone can spot fraud or other gaming of the system it would be Scott. You have got to give him credit though looking out of the state’s finances. “
I mentioned that one time here when he was running for governor and got trashed by his posse. I worked at HCA when he took over and saw some interesting stuff.
The facts of this case are very different from what you're suggesting. It's not nice to go toe to toe with Mrs. Clinton when she's trying to nationalize healthcare. This case is a testament to that fact.
Tampa/St. Pete just as bad!
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