August 10, 2004
Health care giant HCA faces a class-action lawsuit over what it charges patients who have no health insurance.
The plaintiffs in the suit claim the rates they were charged not only exceeded the industry norm, but in all cases were higher than those charged to insured patients.
The suit, filed in Clark County, Nevada, charges Mountainview Hospital, an HCA property, also initiated harassing and predatory collection efforts against the uninsured patients.
"Charging a small and disenfranchised element of our society outrageous prices that result in economic and emotional ruin is not the answer to solving our national health care funding conundrum," attorney Archie Lamb said.
The plaintiffs are asking for restitution and attorneys' fees and they want HCA's profits from the alleged overcharging to go into a trust for the benefit of the plaintiff and other class-action members.
Billing issues are becoming more common in the health care industry, but hospitals generally defend their practice of providing discounts to insured patients, because of negotiated agreements with insurance companies. Uninsured patients charge that the practice is discriminatory. At least one hospital group has settled the action against it, agreeing to forgive $150 million in debt.
With health care promising to be a major issue in an election year, Congress has even begun looking into the issue of higher rates for the uninsured.
