Legal News

SoCal hospital chain settles 'balanced billing' suit

By Richard Binder

Balanced billing may have taken its final, fatal blow yesterday as Prime Healthcare Services agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by the state of California in 2008 when more than 6,000 Southern California Kaiser Permanente patients were dragged into a payment dispute between the hospital chain and the HMO.

Ontario-based Prime had sent bills to patients treated in the company's emergency rooms, even though the treatment was covered in their plans. Prime later admitted the bills were a tactic in their $10 million suit against Kaiser for unpaid bills. The practice of "balanced billing" was later forbidden thanks to new regulations, although the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that it has since persisted to a lesser degree.

As part of the settlement, Prime has agreed to refund any payments it has collected as a result of this tactic and contribute $1.2 million to community clinics that treat the uninsured.

Click these for details.

Full post as published by Legal Pad | LA on May 25, 2010 (boomark / email).