Charity care gets boost at hospitals

Uninsured, poor patients will get a break on their hospital bills under a new set of charity care guidelines announced Wednesday.

The policy, adopted by all community hospitals across Washington, is designed to help the state’s 600,000 uninsured people and stave off potential legislation.

“What we’re saying is ‘Look, hospitals are doing their part to ease this terrible situation,’” said Cassie Sauer, spokeswoman for the Washington State Hospital Association.

All community hospitals have voluntarily agreed to provide free care to patients living in poverty. Uninsured patients living within 200 percent of the federal poverty level ($40,000 for a family of four) will receive a discount on their bills.

The guidelines also offer price discounts to other uninsured patients financially qualified.

Spokane-based hospitals already meet or exceed the new charity care guidelines.

Christine Varela, a spokeswoman for Empire Health Services, which operates Deaconess Medical Center and Valley Hospital and Medical Center, said the guidelines highlight the growing problem of government health care programs that aren’t helping society’s most vulnerable.

As part of the new guidelines, hospital boards will be more involved with overseeing collections policies. Also, hospitals will provide patients with clear written notice about their eligibility for financial help.

“More patients are not only going to qualify for financial assistance, but we’re going to make sure we tell them about it,” Sauer said.

Washington hospitals wrote off about $217 million in charity care during 2005. Charity care is the write-offs hospitals attribute to uninsured people living in poverty who they don’t expect to pay. It is different than bad debt, which hospitals consider bills that are neglected by patients expected to pay.

Spokane’s hospitals have been wrestling with these growing write-offs in recent years.

The guidelines are in direct response to difficult questions posed last year by state legislators on the House Health and Wellness Committee.

Among the most fundamental: Why are some of the lowest-income, uninsured patients being sent the highest bills?

The question shone an embarrassing light on the fact that uninsured poor people are often charged more money for hospital procedures than their wealthier, insured neighbors.

The answer was that insurance companies bargain lower rates for their customers. Since such an answer wasn’t going to win favor with legislators, Sauer said, hospitals decided to act.

The hospitals now want the Legislature to make changes by subsidizing more insurance coverage costs and boosting Medicaid reimbursement rates.