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The cost of state payment delays

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Illinois

* Ugh…

The stack of bills owed by the state to Springfield hospitals, doctors and dentists for the care of state workers and retirees totals at least $160 million and sets new records with each passing month. […]

The amount owed by the state for that care is growing by about $200 million per month and won’t stop until there’s legislation appropriating general revenue funds to pay the bills, COGFA executive director Dan Long said. […]

Meanwhile, Springfield Clinic has delayed hiring, delayed constructing a physician practice building in Chatham and tapped its reserves to deal with the lack of payment from the state, Kuhn said. […]

At SIU HealthCare, the physician group involving faculty members from Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, the average delay in state payments stands at about 300 days, spokeswoman Karen Carlson said. […]

Because of the [525- to 550-day] delays, Memorial Medical Center, which is owed at least $60 million, has put off constructing an $80 million medical office building that would be rented to SIU doctors in Springfield.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 11:26 am

Comments

My daughter can’t see the local dermatologist because of this. He won’t accept patients who have state health insurance. It makes me incredibly angry on two fronts. I’m angry at the State for not paying and I’m also at the Doctor who, despite having my mother in law as a patient for DECADE,S will not see her granddaughter.

Comment by Honeybear Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 11:48 am
Just one of the “nearly every measure” in which the state is in worse shape now than when Gov. Rauner took office, as the collectivists at Crains noted last January.

Yet despite all these failures of basic governance (AKA the actual job) , some would have you believe the same screwballs, through state legislation, could bend to their will the global economy (AKA the fantasy).

The Frat Boy kegger is still going strong, broseph. The cleanup-with-hangover is still to come.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:03 pm
It’s also hurting state workers credit. I’ve been billed over $2,500 for an emergency root canal. There’s no way that I can pay this, so it will go to collections. Earlier this year, I had to pay $1,800 out of pocket for my husband’s wisdom teeth extraction.

Comment by Dread Pirate Roberts Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:11 pm
Is there some Federal Wage and Labor action that can make the State pay these medical bills? After all, they are withholding premiums for health care out of every pay check.

Comment by ANONIME Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:12 pm
There is a lawsuit in Cook County regarding this issue. Everyone should keep following it. However, in the worst case scenario, you should see the doctor and make arrangements to pay once the doctor receives the EOB from the insurance company. That way, you are paying the negotiated rate and you will receive your payment, plus the 9% interest from the doctor when they get paid. Not the best scenario but there’s no reason any doctor will not see a patient as long as the patient has the means to utilize this course of action.

Comment by No Raise Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:13 pm
Rauner proposed changes to employee healthcare would souble the employee cost, thus trmovng spending income from themlocal economy, or require employees to get plans with a lot less benefits.

ie imagine if that 160million in spending becomes 60million under rauners cuts to afscme employees. The savings will come out of the local economy. if they think the delay is bad, just wait until 100 mil is removed overall, plus empliyees spending less due to decreased income.

think this is bad, if rauner gets his way the spfld economy is going to fo bad quick

Comment by Ghost Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:34 pm
Dread, I know how you feel. Looking at $5k for two sets of wisdom tooth removal. The oral surgeon requires cash on the barrelhead. Our great State dental insurance pays $1800 of that with at least a year delay in payments.

Comment by Arthur Andersen Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:40 pm
Public employee benefits need to be slashed. There simply isn’t enough money for these obscenely generous plans.

Comment by Ron Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:41 pm
We also need to slash programs. why isn’t that ever part of the discussion. The state has no money, is losing population, has one of the worst job growth rates and high unemployment. Times are tough.

Comment by Ron Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:43 pm
Yes, but the benefit from crushing the unions will more than make up for the cost of the state drowning in red ink. Won’t it? That is, the emotional benefit for Bruce and his pals. As for Illinois, we’ll just live with the catastrophe.

Comment by Eugene Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:44 pm
I got a big bill today because Medicare Advantage refused to pay for my mammogram. Its crazy that our governor does not care.

Comment by Mama Retired Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 12:53 pm
I read the article over the weekend. My first thought was how the injection of that much cash into the local market would create a LOT of economic activity … or conversely, how much that lack of cash was hurting the local economy.

Comment by RNUG Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:02 pm
Ron’s the kind of “conservative” who deducts money from paychecks to pay for health care bills, then doesn’t
pay the health care bills.

That’s also known as “fraud” and “theft.”

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:03 pm
This was posted in the AFSCME 31 Retirees Facebook Group over the weekend.

HEALTH INSURANCE INFORMATION:
At the Executive Board Meeting we we’re given some information about assistand for nonpayment.
For the whole state, this includes Delta Dental, for central and Southern Illinois, this includes Health Alliance and other “pass trhough” programs.
If your health care provider is asking for upfront payment, billed you for the full cost of services, refused to see you because “your insurance isn’t paying claims” or turned you into a collection agency::
You need to do the following:
Talk to the Doctor/Dentis and tell them the insurance is still good, but Rauner withholding payment until Rauner gets his way.
Remind them that the health insurance company is liable for these payments, not the patient.
IF THAT DOESN”T WORK:
Call youor insurance company’s number on the the back of your insurance card.
Take note of who you talked to and the date
Explain what happened
They may tell you that they can’t pay because the State isn’t paying us(even tho the state is getting premiums, etc.)
Call CMS at 800-44201300
Explaing what happened. Be specific about the payment problem you are experiencing (no care, witholding care, collection)
Again, ensure that you write down the name of whom you spoke to and when.
IF you are an AFSCME RETIREE MEMBER and CMS is unhelpful, you have other recourses that you will be told at your local meetings.

Comment by RNUG Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:08 pm
Sringfield clinic has recently(within 3 months)lost some world class doctors who have apparently chosen to go where they will get paid what was promised. This is a huge drain on our health care system…..

Comment by flea Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:22 pm
Thanks RNUG, but could you check that CMS #. It’s got too many numbers on it. I was hoping someone would have that number. I’m definitely going to call CMS on this DR. It’s entirely unethical to refuse to even see my daughter because of my insurance which I continue to pay.

I also hope that people will not feed Ron. Just don’t do it.

Comment by Honeybear Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:29 pm
Arthur Andersen, it’s a terrible position to be put in. Still waiting for my reimbursement from the state on that wisdom teeth surgery, I won’t hold my breath.

Thank you RNUG. That gives me a good place to start.

Comment by Dread Pirate Roberts Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:39 pm
Honeybear, no need to feed me. I’m not hungry. The public worker benefits are very hungry. They have an insatiable appetite for our taxes.

Comment by Ron Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 1:45 pm
Honey, I think the correct number is 800-442-1300.

In related insanity, AA Princess 2 tried to opt out of paying for student health care at UIUC because 1) she’s covered under my State insurance, 2) it saves AA about $400 a year, and 3) nobody wants to go to McKinley. There was some glitch in the automated system and it took her two tries to successfully opt out. Now, the bureaucrats are saying that because she “changed her mind” (no, your IT system that is probably outsourced is a mess) she has to submit “a certificate of coverage” and a “schedule of benefits” to assure that I’m not lying about having her covered and that my insurance is “equivalent” to the UI/McKinley plan. Setting aside the first half of that ask, it’s totally ridiculous to ask parents to get something the Big U would have plenty of information about-since all their employees are in the same health plan as I, and similarly situated parents, are participating in. This is almost as ridiculous as CMS making us verify we could still fog a mirror last year in order to keep our insurance.

Comment by Arthur Andersen Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 2:02 pm
I thought I read there was a company being formed that would buy the bills, pay the doctors and dentists and then collect from the state later. They would also collect the interest from the state, which is how the company would make a profit. It said Jim Edgar was an investor in that company. The next day Rauner was bashing Edgar, implying Edgar was trying to make money off the suffering of state retirees and employees.
Does anyone know the name of the company and if they are open for business yet?

Comment by DuPage Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 2:13 pm
“Does anyone know the name of the company and if they are open for business yet?”

Illinois Financing Partners http://www.illinoisfp.com/

– MrJM

Comment by @MisterJayEm Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 2:44 pm
But everyone will vote come November because they keep up the good work.

Comment by No Sense Monday, Sep 12, 16 @ 6:08 pm