May 14, 2019 – Charge Help

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Anchor lead: There may be help for astronomical hospital charges, Elizabeth Tracey reports

Now that the federal government has mandated that hospitals must publish a complete list of all of their charges so that patients can understand their bills, more work needs to be done. That’s according to Redonda Miller, president of the Johns Hopkins Hospital. The lists themselves must be rendered easier to navigate, and patients need to understand their options.

Miller: If you see a charge on a website that you don’t understand call your insurance company and go through the details of the procedure with your insurance company, so you have a true sense of what your plan covers and doesn’t. And that will be a better and more realistic picture. If you see a charge or you need a procedure and you’re worried and can’t pay it, please call the hospital. Our finance departments offer all kinds of plans, and financial assistance, that we can help you work through it so that you can afford the care you need. We are prepared to help.  :32

At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.