Provider Cost per Patient Visit

*2002 national average adjusted for inflation.
**Salaries for the nurse, physician, and nurse practitioner are absorbed in the district health department budget.

TO MEET THE EXISTING NEED, LOCAL FACILITIES WOULD NEED TO SERVE AN ADDITIONAL 116 PATIENTS PER DAY, 365 DAYS PER YEAR – AN 85 PERCENT INCREASE.

*Includes those who return for continued treatment.

Policies and Procedures in Working with Uninsured Patients

1. OMHS case managers and financial advisors assist patients in qualifying for Medicaid and other public and private assistance programs. (Some patients qualify for assistance but decline to participate.)
2. Through its participation in the DC-CAP program, OMHS assists patients in finding a physician and donates surgeries, facilities and services to qualifying patients.
3. If the patient’s annual household income is at or below the federal poverty level ($9,570 for singles, $19,350 for a family of four), the bill is absorbed as charity care.
4. Patients qualify for discounted rates on a sliding scale if their annual household income is not greater than 213 percent of the federal poverty level ($20,384 for singles, $41,216 for a family of four).
5. OMHS makes payment arrangements toward outstanding balances without interest charges.
6. OMHS employs collections staff. If a good faith effort to pay on the balance is not made within two-four months, the hospital may turn the case over to a collection agency.
7. In some cases, OMHS may file suit or take legal action to garnish property or wages to satisfy a debt.

Note: Information obtained through telephone interviews with OMHS staff.

*Plus additional volunteers and donated medications
**192 physicians x 52 patients

• Pay through their own means (26 percent do this nationally)
• Negotiate a reduced amount and/or set up a payment plan with health care providers (hospital, physicians, clinics, labs, pharmacies, etc.)
• Seek help (Churches/HELP Office, St. Vincent DePaul, Audubon Area Community Services, corporate drug assistance programs, etc.)
• Sell assets to pay bills
• Advise the health care provider that they are unable to pay and hope that the expense is absorbed as charity care
• File bankruptcy

Note: Uninsured patients generally do not benefit from discounted charges negotiated between insurance companies, hospitals, and other health care providers.

• Volunteer at a clinic
• Contribute to a clinic for general operations or prescription drugs
• Engage in dialogue about options to address this issue
• Advocate for local, state, and/or federal government action to address this issue
• Practice and promote healthy lifestyles to reduce the need for health care
• Encourage physicians to do their share of treating the uninsured; salute those who do
• Advocate OMHS to shift more non-emergency patients and funds from the emergency room to clinics and primary care
• Support and salute employers who provide employees with health insurance
• Support steps to reduce medical liability insurance and other ways to attract more physicians to our community
• Encourage medical schools to admit more students to medical schools, particularly for careers in primary care