A new twist in healthcare billing: the 'facility fee'
Published: 2010-01-04 08:57:15
Author: Emily Dwass | Los Angeles Times | December 21, 2009
Possibly coming soon to a doctor's office near you: a little something extra on your bill, not covered by insurance -- a nifty number known as a "facility fee." What is it exactly? Here's a fun experiment: Ask five medical professionals. Most likely, you will get a variety of explanations, all guaranteed to make you respond, "Huh?"
"Healthcare billing is complex enough without throwing another factor into the mix," writes the website FierceHealthFinance. "Increasingly, however, it seems that consumers are being caught off guard by a new bill -- a 'facility fee' for visiting doctors based in a hospital-owned building -- which these days they're usually expected to pay on their own."
I definitely was caught off guard when I checked in to see a specialist in a Cedars-Sinai Medical Center building in Los Angeles and was told to pay a $75 facility fee. When I asked what that meant, the receptionist explained that this was a fee being levied to cover the wear-and-tear I would inflict on the office.
Or at least I think that's what he said. Though I already was somewhat dazed by my medical problem, I did grasp that the extra charge was being imposed simply because I was in the house.
What if I promised not to touch anything? Could the fee be waived? I didn't even need to sit down. I could stand in the corner, on my newspaper.
No dice.
So I handed over my credit card, then went into the ladies' room. I entered a stall and discovered -- no toilet paper! Excuse me, but if you're going to charge patients a facility fee, then how about maintaining the facilities?
My next encounter with a facility fee took place when I called UCLA to make an appointment for a routine check-up with a new doctor. The appointment secretary said this doctor had offices at the UCLA buildings in Westwood and Santa Monica. Which did I prefer?
Full story
Published: 2010-01-04 08:57:15
Author: Emily Dwass | Los Angeles Times | December 21, 2009
Possibly coming soon to a doctor's office near you: a little something extra on your bill, not covered by insurance -- a nifty number known as a "facility fee." What is it exactly? Here's a fun experiment: Ask five medical professionals. Most likely, you will get a variety of explanations, all guaranteed to make you respond, "Huh?"
"Healthcare billing is complex enough without throwing another factor into the mix," writes the website FierceHealthFinance. "Increasingly, however, it seems that consumers are being caught off guard by a new bill -- a 'facility fee' for visiting doctors based in a hospital-owned building -- which these days they're usually expected to pay on their own."
I definitely was caught off guard when I checked in to see a specialist in a Cedars-Sinai Medical Center building in Los Angeles and was told to pay a $75 facility fee. When I asked what that meant, the receptionist explained that this was a fee being levied to cover the wear-and-tear I would inflict on the office.
Or at least I think that's what he said. Though I already was somewhat dazed by my medical problem, I did grasp that the extra charge was being imposed simply because I was in the house.
What if I promised not to touch anything? Could the fee be waived? I didn't even need to sit down. I could stand in the corner, on my newspaper.
No dice.
So I handed over my credit card, then went into the ladies' room. I entered a stall and discovered -- no toilet paper! Excuse me, but if you're going to charge patients a facility fee, then how about maintaining the facilities?
My next encounter with a facility fee took place when I called UCLA to make an appointment for a routine check-up with a new doctor. The appointment secretary said this doctor had offices at the UCLA buildings in Westwood and Santa Monica. Which did I prefer?
Full story