An examination of billing policies and practices at more than 500 hospitals across the country shows widespread reliance on aggressive collection tactics.
At the same time, a majority of hospitals scrutinized by KHN effectively shroud their collection activities, publicly posting incomplete or in many cases no information about what can happen to patients if they can't pay.
A similar share of the hospitals report patients with outstanding bills to credit rating agencies, putting patients' credit scores and their ability to rent an apartment, buy a car, or get a job at risk; Balogun, a prize-winning student, landed a job at banking giant Goldman Sachs and used his signing bonus to begin paying down the debt. Five years later, he's still making payments. Now Balogun said he thinks twice before going to the doctor.
Nick and Elizabeth Woodruff pose for a portrait in their home, May, 2022, Binghamton, N.Y. The Woodruff's are approximately in $20,000 of medical debt after Nick developed an infection in his foot seven years ago that required emergency surgery.Ascension spokesperson Nick Ragone told KHN that the chain, America's second-largest Catholic system,"ceased taking legal action against patients for unpaid bills starting in October 2019.
At many medical centers, however, information about financial assistance is difficult or impossible to find. About 1 in 5 hospitals researched by KHN, including public university systems in five states, don't post aid policies online.
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