Make Cash King in the Healthcare Reform

Cash payers should get the best available rate for health care services.

It is becoming more and more apparent that Republican reforms of the ACA will drive people out of the health insurance market by the millions.

How to lessen the sting to these unfortunate health care consumers? Mandate that cash-paying patients get a rate not to exceed the rate that Medicare pays for the same service.

By capping fees to the corresponding DRG (diagnostic related group) prices, patients without insurance will avoid being victimized by unscrupulous medical providers who have separate price lists for uninsured patients, lists where the prices are often more than double what they accept from insurers.

And, why not? When a provider sends a claim in to the insurance company they have to wait weeks or months to be paid, risk getting certain charges denied, or risk not getting paid at all if the patient has not yet met their deductible and is unable or unwilling to pay.

Cash at time of service solves all these problems: it lowers costs to doctors and service providers, and lowers the out-of-pocket costs to the patient.

Hopefully, the Republicans can include this sort of common-sense consumer protection that also benefits the service provider into their reform of Obamacare.