Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Louise F. Rogers, Chief, San Mateo County Health
Chester J. Kunnappilly, MD, Chief Executive Officer, San Mateo Medical Center
Subject: Agreement with Rash Curtis and Associates for Self-Pay Patient Bad Debt Account Collections
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution authorizing an agreement with Rash Curtis and Associates for self-pay patient bad debt account services for the term of August 1, 2019 through July 31, 2022, in an amount not to exceed $750,000.
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BACKGROUND:
San Mateo Medical Center (SMMC) provides medical services to the County's safety net population and many of those services are supported by state and federal funding sources. However, some patients do not have insurance, or they have insurance which may require co-payments or deductibles. SMMC's Patient Financial Services department (PFS) follows up with patients on their outstanding balances, also known as "self-pay" accounts, for approximately 120 days. The Health Coverage Unit works with patients to explore access to SMMC's various financial assistance programs to help them with their hospital bills. Such efforts include assistance with enrolling in health coverage, discounting bills for the self-insured, and creating payment plans for patient's co-pays and deductibles. SMMC works hard to prevent the cost of care from being a barrier to receiving care. Accordingly, SMMC has a policy that prohibits the practice known as "balance billing", which applies to balances not covered by insurance companies (beyond a patient's responsibility for copayments, coinsurance and deductibles).
After 120 days, PFS follows up with a self-pay account. All accounts that have not been enrolled in any financial assistance programs or have not obtained insurance coverage are reclassified as a bad debt account and transferred to the County's Revenue Services for follow up.
DISCUSSION:
Ap...
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