Hospitals are bracing for an increase in unpaid medical bills and related uncompensated care after the Republican-led Congress let funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program lapse. Since the Affordable Care Act expanded coverage to more than 20 million Americans, hospital charity care and related uncompensated care expenses that include bad debt have dropped significantly. The 2015 level of uncompensated care costs were the lowest amount since 2007 , the AHA figures show. But a loss in money from millions of children covered by CHIP would reverse the uncompensated care trend and certainly hit hospitals hard. The healthcare industry was still hopeful momentum would return in Congress and CHIP funding would be renewed before providers and their patients would be harmed.

Source: Forbes October 05, 2017 10:52 UTC