Good news for the uninsured. A new Senate health care bill would require nonprofit hospitals to charge patients who are uninsured no more than the lowest charge that they have for their insured patients. Hospitals have come under a lot of scrutiny as of late for overcharging the uninsured. These charges have ended up in lawsuits.
This bill tries to eliminate those issues. A 2007 study in the journal Health Affairs suggested that hospitals were actually charging the uninsured 2.5 times what insured patients were paying. Cinergy Health however, points out that "these fees are often negotiated, and can be negotiated way down." Time will tell if the bill passes and if it makes a difference.
