Quote:
Originally Posted by 3~Shepherds
What will they pay? They can't afford basic needs in every day life. Most don't even have a mailing address how will they pay from under the bridge. Guess we can now count on those gang members doing their part. Finally paying for all the gang violence that puts them in the emergency.
|
When someone comes in the ER, they will be treated, as usual. However, what most folks do not understand is - by law - ERs are required to stabilize patients, not "cure" them. So . . . the patient is stabilized and then what?
Estimates vary on how many folks show up at the ER without insurance. Some figures put it as high as 40%. I have not researched this in the last year.
So what happens when someone comes into the ER with a gunshot wound and no insurance? They will be stabilized.
And then the medical social workers or whomever has the responsibility (Patient Care Rep, perhaps) will get that person's info and attempt to assist with hooking them up with Medicaid . . . or whatever other subsidized program (charity care) they may qualify for in that particular hospital, county, etc.
I have not been able to get a clear answer as to how hospitals are handling collections for folks without insurance under ACA. I, personally, think that hospitals have no choice but get the person's Social Security number, and make a computer available to them, on site, where they are then signed up for some ACA program (without any suggestions or "leading" f/ the hospital employee). I checked this out with an attorney, and evidently, this is legally feasible.
In the past, hospitals never turned over such info (to other agencies outside of Medicaid or Medicare) but in case no one has been paying attention . . . the info you put into the ACA website (social security #, salary, tel #, web address, address, etc) is now ACCESSIBLE to other agencies, including your own LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Did you realize that when you went on that website, every bit of info about you (including your IP address) is now in a central database and available to other agencies,
including your local city/county government?
So . .. what I am saying is . . . the days of going into an ER instead of a physician's office to avoid paying for healthcare are basically over. Sure, people will lie about their social security number, name, address, etc and try to skip out on their hospital bills. But ACA has made that much more difficult to do.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
