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" people without insurance are going to bring some losses, but you don't just let them die." Are you aware of the health insurance debate/disaster in the US? H
by dfc 13y ago
" people without insurance are going to bring some losses, but you don't just let them die."
Are you aware of the health insurance debate/disaster in the US? How long can doctors operate at a loss?
I must say that you are very fortunate if you do not know someone who has died of cancer and was unable to see/pay every specialist they could fit in to their final months days. People die of cancer all the time wishing they had the money to see the ______ oncology specialist.
- jaggederest 13y agoI've actually worked with health insurance billing. The way it works is that they bill ridiculously large amounts, which nobody without insurance can pay. They know this. The insurance companies negotiate it, other people pay what they can, and it all more or less works out in the end. I'd much, much prefer to see a single payer system. Seeing every specialist is different than being in treatment with a doctor and having them cut you off because you can't pay. It's very rare I hear of a doctor going "well it's a shame you can't afford to pay for this surgery" - nearly always they do it, bill it, and accept the losses. Hospitals recover less than 20% from people without insurance.
- foobarbazqux 13y agoDo doctors make individual decisions about working pro bono, and does it come directly out of their paycheque, or does the hospital cover it for them?
- refurb 13y agoTexas oncology is a private practice. The $50K most likely paid for all the non-labor costs of the treatment. The doctors were working for free; i.e. they weren't compensated for their time
- jaggederest 13y agoIt's basically up to the people involved, everything is so baroque and ad-hoc there's not much standardization besides with medicare/medicaid and even that makes my eyes water.
- dfc 13y agoI have had two family friends pass away while being unable to afford follow up visits to a specialist in NYC. You mention that you have "worked with insurance billing" in the past tense, is it possible that things have changed?