by Robert Preidt
Health reporter
Face Fat Loss Before And After - Almost 1 in 4 Face Surprise Bills After ER Visit
Wednesday, (Health News) - As if a trip to ER is not traumatic enough, many US emergency room patients end up with large unexpected costs, a new study says.
The researchers at the University of Yale analyzed 2.2 million broadcasts by patients with less than 65 throughout the country between the beginning of 2014 and the end of 2015.Almost a quarter of the Patients who went to health insurance networks were treated by an out-of-network physician and ended up with unexpected expenses, the study found.
According to discoveries, out-of-the-network emergency physicians charged up to 800% of Medicare rates, while emergency -Network doctors were paid around 300% of Medicare rates.
Patients were presented with an average note of about $ 622 and potentially much more if their insurer only covered network rates, the researchers reported.
Many patients would be difficult to pay to pay such account, the researchers said. They estimated that 47% of Americans could not cover an unexpected spending of $ 400 without incurring credit card debts or asset sales, according to the Federal Reserve of U.S ..
"Most patients with health coverage go to networking rooms and rightly expects to be treated by networking medical," said the co-author of the Zack Cooper study, a public health assistant professor and economy In Yale.
"Our study shows that almost a quarter of people who visited networking rooms were exposed to potentially large costs. This is just wrong and we must do better. People should not face the financial ruin of accounts Doctors that can not reasonably avoid: "Cooper said in Yale news statement.
Based on the discoveries, the Cooper team believes that state policies about the surprised billing out of the network are inadequate and the federal government did not take any action on the issue.
Researchers have suggested that hospitals should be required by law to sell an emergency service package that includes medical services and facility rates. The hospital would then work their own emergency room and would pay the doctors directly.
However, two groups representing the doctors erected with the findings.
DR. Rebecca Parker is president of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). She said that the conclusions of the new study are based on "complaints data from a large insurance company, which [are not identified and not available for examination, showing the lack of transparency by the health insurance industry.
"Most emergency physicians prefer to be" on the network, "as long as insurers pay just," Parker said in a declaration of ACEP.
In addition to calling insurance companies to release more transparent data, it believes that "state and federal policy formulators need to ensure that health insurance plans offer fair payment by emergency services and offer lists adequate doctors. "
DR. Tim Seay is a chair of the Emergency Department Practice Management Association, another commercial group. In the same statement, he said that the new research "ignores the fact that emergency physicians provide care without the ability to pay. The problem is inappropriate insurance coverage and high franchises."
The study was published November. 16 No New England Journal of Medicine.
