US government encourages insurance companies to advance pay health care providers

Insurance companies - American flag - person offering payment

After a massive cyberattack, the government hopes insurers will make advance payments. The US government has called for insurance companies to choose to voluntarily send advance payments to health care providers who were affected by a massive cyberattack. The attack caused a disruption to the processing systems with insurers. According to the US government, the cyberattack had a “significant impact” and it is hoping that insurance companies will choose to send advance payments to health care providers in light of what happened.  The attack impacted Change Healthcare, a UnitedHealth Group…

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Health insurance customers comprise most people with medical debt

Health insurance - Past Due Medical Bills

This represents a dramatic shift from a previous time when most debtors were uninsured. The majority of people who have debt to American hospitals are individuals who are covered by health insurance, according to data recently released by medical billing analysts. Patients with coverage are often still unable to pay the bills they receive from hospitals. “We always used to consider bad debt, especially bad debt write-offs from a hospital perspective, those [patients] that have the ability to pay but don’t,” said Kodiak Solutions senior vice president Colleen Hall. Kodiak…

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More than half of US adults with health insurance struggle with their plan

Your Health Insurance Plan Form

People with poor of fair mental health faced the highest challenges with their coverage. Over half of insured adults in the United States are facing struggles with their health insurance, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey. The survey results showed struggles in everything from payment discrepancies to limited mental healthcare coverage. The online survey was conducted this year between February 21 and March 14. It involved the participation of 3,605 adults who are covered by employer-sponsored health insurance plans, Medicaid, Medicare, a Military plan, or Affordable Care Act…

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Under half of American adults have basic health insurance literacy

Health insurance - Confusion about coverage

People across the US have widespread misconceptions about important coverage concepts. Many adults across the United States have a weak health insurance literacy, according to a new Forbes Advisor survey. Americans are struggling with issues such as basic terms and concepts regarding their coverage. The survey from Forbes Advisor showed that as much as 77 percent of Americans were confused by basic terms used in their health insurance policies, such as co-payment, co-insurance and deductible. The survey was conducted online and involved the participation of 2,000 US adults with a…

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Percentage of Americans Covered by Health Insurance Plans Fell in 2018

Americans Covered by Health Insurance Plans Percentage Decline

This represents the first time coverage levels have fallen since the Affordable Care Act went into effect. For the first time since 2009 – the year before the Affordable Care Act was implemented – the percentage of Americans with health insurance plans fell last year. Until 2018, the share of U.S. residents with health insurance had risen each year since 2010. The drop in the share of Americans covered by health insurance plans has occurred regardless of the strength of the economy. Therefore, it was speculated in a New York…

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