Re:Hospitals pledge to fight admin price transparency plan i...
by vkou on Tuesday November 19, 2019 @01:02PM
(#21576022)
Non-paying patients are, while frequently trotted out, not the reason for why prices are 3-4x higher in the US.
Outside of the ER, if you don't have insurance, and can't pay, you'll get shown the door. The overwhelming majority of medical procedures that take place across the country are not done in the ER.
Re:Hospitals pledge to fight admin price transparency plan i...
by sct202 on Tuesday November 19, 2019 @01:05PM
(#21576055)
So many medical clinics and outpatient facilities don't have to deal with costs supporting those groups and they still have outrageous pricing. The homeless/unemployed/etc groups only really affect emergency care. If they aren't about to die from lack of care, the hospitals aren't required to treat them.
If the US wants to get rid of horribly high sticker prices it needs a reform of how stuff is paid for, especially homeless/unemployed/undocumented patients. In Germany, the state covers insurance premiums for the first two categories and undocumented/asylum seeking patients only get life-saving treatments (truly inhumane if you ask me).