WELL STATES HEALTHCARE
We all want to trust doctors. When we are injured, we rely on medical professionals to help us recover. But it can be hard to trust the medical institution that doctors and nurses work for. Everyone has heard the myths of price gouging and needing to request itemized billing statements. Everyone knows that healthcare is expensive in the United States. Everyone knows that it’s dangerous to go uninsured, because those costs only go up without insurance. And those people that do go uninsured fear the institution of healthcare the most.
These fears are not unfounded, and result in many uninsured individuals going without the treatment they need. This mistrust is often predicated on the conflict of interest that uninsured individuals face when they receive treatment by a healthcare provider that covers the cost of that treatment with a lien. Many providers do not offer liens to avoid this conflict of interest, which results in the provider turning away uninsured patients. Being turned away is another fear that results in the uninsured avoiding treatment that they need and would bring added profit to a provider practice.
The conflict of interest that arises from a provider holding a medical lien on an uninsured persons treatment usually comes in one of two forms. One, a provider covering the initial cost of treatment might recommend cheaper and less effective treatment or provide less extensive and lower quality care in an effort to minimize lost profit for what may be a long term repayment. Two, a provider covering the initial cost of treatment for an uninsured individual may overcharge for treatment to increase profit over time, given that there is no third party (I.e., an insurer) to oversee billing on the patient end and catch potential price gouging.
Well States helps providers avoid these issues and restore trust to healthcare providers. By providing a third party lien, Well States removes the conflict of interest from healthcare providers. Moreover, Well States restores the trust that uninsured patients have in healthcare providers by recommending them to healthcare providers that we have partnered with. Our partner providers agree to fair and prenegotiated billing arrangements when they enter our provider network, and our clients know and respect that.
If you want to know how you can regain the trust of your less fortunate patients and avoid conflict of interest in lien billing, contact Well States. You can find out more by calling 855.FOR.WSHC (367-9742) or visit our website at wshcgroup.com. We’re always looking to expand our provider network.