Letter to the editor

This letter is in response to the recent Observer editorial, “Raves, Rants and Reality.”

It’s very nice to hear the writer’s comments about her health care experience at Kimball Health Services and that she felt she was well taken care of, even though she was unhappy with the collections process. KHS is happy to receive these comments so that we can continue to improve our process and give our patients a better overall experience.

In order to protect the privacy of not only hers but all of our patients, I will not be drawn into a public discussion of individual cases. The issues raised, though, do create an opportunity to discuss the billing process and hopefully answer a few questions.

Medical costs are high throughout the United States and unfortunately, Kimball County is no exception. At KHS, we understand that it is hard to come up with the money to pay a medical bill. This is usually an unplanned expense that most people do not budget. Therefore, we do what we can to help our patients, yet keep our hospital doors open.

For those unable to pay their medical bill, the KHS financial policy allows patients to set up an interest-free payment plan. The requirement is that the visit must be paid in full within 24 months after the first bill is received by the patient. There is not another medical facility in the surrounding area that allows this much time to pay a bill. The typical amount of time is anywhere from three months to one year. But in an effort to help our patients, KHS set the limit at two years.

Going a step further, if a patient is unable to pay their bill off within two years, medical loans for this purpose are available at a local bank. The patient will just need to apply with the qualifying bank and KHS provides the security needed to guarantee the loan. This will enable a large majority of patients to be approved for a medical loan. In other cases, KHS also offers a charity care program for patients who qualify based on certain criteria.

It is KHS’s practice to contact our patients to let them know of the different options they have to pay their medical bills. Rather than continuing to contract with an outside collection agency, several months ago the collections department was brought back in-house so that we could make it a more personal experience for our patients and also help provide more jobs for our community.

It should be mentioned that for patients on Medicare and Medicaid, KHS is actually only reimbursed by those programs at 99 percent of what Medicare deems to be allowable costs. This means that on over 58 percent of our patient load, we lose more than 1 percent of what it costs to take care of them.

Also, KHS is a self-sustaining entity of Kimball County. Unlike many hospitals, it does not receive any money from the county or any taxes that are collected by the county or state.

Unfortunately, all of these factors put even more pressure on KHS to collect all of the money it is owed by self-pay patients and those at least partially covered by insurance. If KHS does not collect on these accounts, it simply will not be able to keep its doors open. The devastation to this community, if it does not have a hospital, is too catastrophic to detail in a short letter.

I know that it is a struggle for everyone in this community and the outlying communities to come up with the money to pay their medical bills. This is why KHS is doing all it can to help.

I am happy to answer any questions privately or discuss the KHS financial policy with anyone. Please feel free to contact me at 308-235-1951. We must work together to save healthcare in our country and in particular in our small community.

Thank you.

Melissa Prante, Chief Financial Officer

Kimball Health Services