Kaiser charged member $4,029 AFTER Kaiser hospital bill was entirely paid

Kaiser Member Upset Over Hospital Charges
Diane Lund-Muzikant
Lund Report
October 11, 2012

Susan Chaney is convinced insurance companies are some of the highest profiting companies in America at the expense of people such as herself who deserve the right to affordable healthcare.

She spoke out after her husband, Jerry, a diabetic, was hospitalized at Kaiser Sunnyside in January for a foot ulcer that had gone undiagnosed.

After receiving the bill, Chaney realized their deductible and co-insurance hadn’t been met. That, she said, was never the issue.

Chaney became upset when Kaiser sent paperwork known as an Explanation of Benefits indicating that its medical center had billed $20,809.45 for the surgery, medical equipment and hospital stay, while the allowed amount was $28,300.65. Kaiser paid $24,644.32 toward the bill, while the Chaney’s were left owing $4,029.92.

“How does the hospital get paid $8,000 more than the cost of care?” asked Chaney who sent a complaint to the Oregon Insurance Division. “Everyone seems to think we’re trying to get out of paying, but that’s not the case. This is one reason people can’t afford healthcare is when they have to pay more than the actual cost. We’re the lucky people; we have insurance. But this is absolutely ludicrous.”

Earlier, Chaney had contacted Congressman Earl Blumenauer’s office in Portland, speaking with his casework manager Emily Hebbron who encouraged her to file a complaint with the Insurance Division.

“I want to make sure she gets an answer,” Hebbron said. “And I comment her for looking at the hospital bill so closely. Not everyone would have done so.”

The Insurance Division did look into this issue, according to a letter sent by Dennis Kuckartz, a consumer advocate. “When the allowed amount is greater than the billed charges, the benefits are calculated on the billed charges,” he wrote. “Even if Kaiser Permanente would have only allowed the billed charges, Mr. Chaney’s liability would have been the same. The claim was processed correctly.”

That explanation doesn’t satisfy Chaney. ”I still contend that this is what’s wrong with the entire system. I do not feel that a hospital or doctor or anyone for that matter should be able to negotiate a higher payment than the cost of care. Add that to the fact that then Kaiser tried to ‘strong arm’ us into making payments of nearly $400 a month on our portion when they had already received $4,000 more than the actual cost of care is absurd. After months and many, many phone calls Kaiser did finally agree to take only $175 per month until our portion is paid.”...