Sponsors of Colorado House Bill 1215, which would have restricted or banned the fees hospitals could charge for certain treatments, are cutting bills after hearing from providers and hospitals. .
The original bill, co-sponsored by Fort Collins Democratic Rep. Andrew Bosenecker, would allow hospitals to make telemedicine visits, most outpatient visits, or outpatient infusion clinics at Harmony Cancer Center at Poodle Valley Hospital and Rocky Medical Center.
Facility usage fees are paid to clinic staff, including nurses, nursing assistants, billing clerks, receptionists, security personnel, IT specialists, housekeepers, and other staff, but not physicians . This is another invoice. Facility fees range from free to thousands of dollars, depending on the patient’s insurance plan. Patients who do not meet the deductible may have to pay a higher fee.
For subscribers:Colorado hospitals under pressure to cut costs and increase billing transparency
Health systems such as the Colorado Hospital Association and UCHealth say HB1215 will have a devastating impact on their operations. CHA estimates it will cost about $9 billion in revenue and lead to the closure of some smaller rural hospitals.
While the original bill banned most facility fees, the newly composed bill focuses on collecting data on facility fees and increasing consumer transparency, but telehealth, Facility fees for preventive services are still prohibited. According to an abstract released by Health Care Without Hidden Costs, Health Care Without Hidden Costs is a coalition of dozens of organizations and individuals focused on making health care more transparent and affordable.
UCHealth spokesman Dan Weaver said even banning facility fees for primary care services and telemedicine caused significant problems across the state, forcing some clinics to close and leaving patients to die. They say they may not get the care they need.
Weaver cited nurse lactation specialists who provide lactation consultations, behavioral health services provided to veterans and other patients. A pharmacist who consults a patient about medications and a nurse who provides care and advice through telemedicine visits. The facility fee is the only reimbursement they receive for those visits, he said.
“It’s important that we have a broad team of staff members and IT professionals to support our telehealth critical infrastructure,” says Weaver. “Telemedicine is also very important to more rural areas of our state, connecting those patients with professionals who would otherwise be unavailable. We need more telemedicine and primary care services instead.”
According to Health Care Without Hidden Costs, the hospital claimed catastrophic losses in funding, patient care and clinic locations under the original bill, but has not provided proof.
Third-party data is central to fact-checking billing from the hospital system as to when, why and how facility fees are charged and where that money goes, and of hidden costs. Not a health care spokeswoman said.
“It’s dangerous and irresponsible to push such drastic policies when we don’t understand the implications,” Weaver said, “as proponents themselves admit. And telemedicine clinics.”
“We have been working with hospitals to address their concerns even before the bill was introduced in February,” Isabel Cruz, policy director for the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, said in a statement. emphasized consumer protection and included general provisions. Why should patients be billed for services they thought they could expect to be free?”
