BILLING & INSURANCE

U.S. hospitals must provide patients with a chargemaster—a list of standard charges. This allows patients to compare prices and have a better understanding of the costs. Here are a few considerations to keep in mind before you view the list of standard charges:

• These charges are rarely the price that patients pay. The chargemaster displays the price for each service before any insurance or self-pay discounts are taken into account. As a result, patients typically pay less than the standard charge listed.
• Hospital charges differ from patient to patient for the same service depending upon variations in treatment.
• Patients who are eligible for financial assistance also receive additional discounts.
• Items included in a charge vary across hospital systems. Different hospitals may have different charges for room and board. Some hospitals combine services into one charge, while others list them separately.
• Looking at various hospital charges does not provide any indication of quality of service and outcomes.
• Patients in need of emergency care are subject to our emergency medical screenings policy.

Hancock Health is committed to helping our patients make informed decisions about their care. Our cost estimator tool helps you understand why charges to anticipate for different types of care. We also collaborated with Indiana Hospital Association on mycareINsight.com, a tool to help you compare prices at different health networks.

When you’re selecting a healthcare provider, cost and insurance coverage are big factors. Hancock Health accepts most major insurance—and we’re probably less expensive than other area health systems offering the same care.

Accepted health plans include:

While we work with numerous health plans, insurance coverage and copayments vary by carrier and procedure. You should check with your insurer to determine whether the surgery you’re considering is covered.

If you can’t afford to pay your bill all at once, we can help you set up a payment plan. You may qualify to spread payment over 12 months, interest-free. If you need more than a year to pay your bill, arrangements will include a low 12% APR interest rate.
If you have questions about your hospital bill, please call the billing and insurance line at (317) 468-4900.

You can also consult our Price Transparency Tool for an idea of how much a surgery at Hancock Health might cost.

We believe everyone should have access to high-quality health care. We know that patients are sometimes unable to pay for their medical expenses, whether due to a lack of insurance, inadequate insurance coverage, or ineligibility for government assistance. To help in these instances, we offer financial assistance for our patients.

Financial assistance is determined by analyzing the household gross income with the most current Federal Poverty Level (FPL) guidelines. We recommend reviewing our financial assistance policy before completing the financial application.

Additional assistance programs we can help connect you with include:

• IndiCare, which offers coverage for prescriptions
• Senior Health Insurance program (SHIP), which can help cover bills not otherwise covered by Medicare and similar programs

If you have questions, we encourage you to review our FAQs below or contact Patient Financial Services by emailing pfs@hancockregional.org.

When you go to a doctor or healthcare provider, you may need to cover certain expenses on your own. These expenses can include a copayment, coinsurance, or deductible. You may have other costs or have to pay the entire bill if you see a provider or visit a healthcare facility that isn’t in your health plan’s network.

“Out-of-network” describes providers and facilities that haven’t signed a contract with your health plan. Providers who are not in your network may bill you for the remaining amount that your plan does not cover. This is in addition to what your plan has already agreed to pay. This is called “balance billing.” This amount could be more than what you pay in-network and may not count toward your yearly out-of-pocket maximum.

“Surprise billing” is an unexpected balance bill. This can happen when you can’t control who is involved in your care—like when you have an emergency or when you schedule a visit at an in-network facility but are unexpectedly treated by an out-of-network provider.

When you get emergency care or are treated by an out-of-network provider at an in-network hospital or ambulatory surgical center, you are protected from surprise billing.

Your health plan generally must:

• Cover emergency services without requiring you to get approval for services in advance (prior authorization).
• Cover emergency services by out-of-network providers.
• To determine your payment, use the charges of an in-network provider or facility. This amount will be shown in your explanation of benefits.
• Count any amount you pay for emergency services or out-of-network services toward your deductible and out-of-pocket limit.

If you believe you were charged incorrectly, you can contact the Indiana Department of Insurance. They can be reached at www.in.gov./idoi or by calling (317) 232-8582.

Our social services team offers support for patients who are struggling, whether it is dealing with costs of care or substance abuse disorder. Services we provide include assistance with:

• Enrolling in the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP)
• Enrolling in the Breast and Cervical Cancer program (BCCP)
• Receiving free care through the Andis Women’s Clinic
• Enrolling in Hoosier Healthwise Medicaid

If you need guidance, please email us at socialservicescontactus@hancockregional.org.