Uncompensated health care jumps 7 percent - bizjournals:

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The financial gap caused by bad charity care to the indigenand government-sponsored health plans increased 7 percentt in the first three monthss of 2009 from the first quarter of according to data provided by the (CHA). The figures reflecg the effects of the recession as more unemployed peoplwe rely on programs such as which only reimburse what hospitals say are the true costsx of medical services at 55 cents onthe dollar, said Stevenb Summer, president of the CHA. “We are clearly hearinyg about anincreased burden,” he said.
The CHA said uncompensatedf care in Colorado hospitals jumpedto $382 millio in the first quarter of 2009, up from $357 milliob in the first threde months of 2008. Summer said the numbers show the shortfalp fromthe “actual costs” of providing medical not the charge that showse up on the hospital The data also lacks numbers from _C5E225ECC4494ADCA63C80E000424B45.html"> HCA-HealthOnr LLC, the largest hospital systemj in Denver, with 13 hospitals. HealthOne doesn’t provide quarterly figuress tothe CHA, said Tiffany a spokeswoman for the association.
Leslied Horna, a spokeswoman for HealthOne, provided figures that showedx the companyreported $97 million in bad debt, charityg care and uninsured discounts in the first quarter. HealthOnw calculates uncompensated care differently than other localhospitals — basing it on billede charges rather than actual In the first quarter of 2008, HealthOne reportedr $87.4 million in uncompensated care. Todd Conklin, CFO for , said uncompensatecd care rose 8 percenyt in the first quarter forthe Denver-area hospital system, which he called “significant.
” who became CFO last September, said if the trend continues, the three-hospital system will continuew to delay capital construction projects and investment in new technology. Exempla — whichg has trimmed non-labor expenses, frozen employee salaries and newhires hasn’t ruled out cutting jobs. So far, that hasn’r been necessary because the organization is still meetinhgits budget, Conklin said. But he said the growint shortfallputs Exempla’s hospitals in a short-term financialk bind, especially since its contracts with major insurer s are current.
Although that won’t resulg in increased premiums in the short term, it puts pressurew on rates down the line, whicu could cost businesses and individuals with insurance more latee on. “Because so much of our reimbursements are contractex with managedcare payers, we don’t have a largse opportunity to shift costs to other payers,” he said. “What it meanws is increased cost withless reimbursements.” Conklimn said there’s little relief in sight in the shortg term. “You hear various reports saying the economyy is supposed to reboundin 2010,” he said.
“Thar means the remainder of 2009 will be Summer agreed the growth ofthe state’d Medicaid rolls is hurting the bottonm line for local hospitals — although it’sz better than people coming into the hospitals with no insurance at all. More Coloradans are coverec by Medicaid, the government-sponsored health plan for low-incomew families, than at any time in its 40-yeaer history, the said earlier this month.
The numbefr of Coloradans receiving Medicaid benefitsz roseto 457,699 in April — an increasre of more than 9,000 from the previouse month and 72,597 from the same time last Although Medicaid reimbursements have improveed for Colorado physicians in recentt years, hospital reimbursements have remainedx static.