Health Expert Says Hospitals Need New Payment System

A national health policy expert says there needs to be a new payment system to reimburse hospitals for the care they provide to the uninsured.

Stuart Altman, a nationally recognized health care expert was one of five panelists that spoke in Nashville today at a forum on hospital payment systems.

Altman was appointed by President Clinton to serve on a Medicare commission, which he predicts could be bankrupt in 14 years. He’s currently a health economics professor at Brandeis University.

Altman says that the hospitals’ role of caring for those with no health insurance is inappropriate, but he also says there’s no other option.

“The evidence is overwhelming that the uninsured do not get nearly as much care as the insured, but they get a lot of care and it is disproportionately provided by the hospitals. And, it’s not that it’s wrong, but it’s wrong. In other words, if that’s the only alternative I would strongly and fervently hope that you keep doing that, but we ought to be developing a payment system that doesn’t require that.”

Hospital profits can be sharply reduced because of what’s called, “bad debt” -bills left by patients who can’t afford to pay.