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PATIENT FAIRNESS IN THE NEWS

The challenges faced by Californians are not unique, but they are magnified by the state’s enormous and diverse population. Despite being home to some of the nation’s top healthcare institutions, California ranks 10th in the country for the highest average hospital charge levels—an astounding 506% of what it actually costs hospitals to provide the services. “That means that for every $100 it costs a hospital to render a service, it bills $506, of which $406 is profit,” Ungs explains.

How Patient Fairness is Using Technology to Challenge Medical Billing Injustice

"Through a blend of custom software, strategic use of AI, and deep industry insight, the platform helps patients push back against unfair charges and challenge the high costs too often passed onto them."

Make Money by Negotiating Your Medical Expenses

Matt Ungs, founder of Patient Fairness, joins the Travis Makes Money podcast to discuss his groundbreaking approach to empowering patients in the fight against unfair medical bills. With nearly 30 years of experience managing provider networks for major health insurance companies, Matt brings insider knowledge to help consumers challenge unjust charges and navigate the complexities of healthcare billing. His platform, Patient Fairness, is revolutionizing how Americans deal with surprise bills and overcharges.

Empowering Women to Fight Unfair Medical Bills with

Patient Fairness

Patient Fairness equips patients with the tools and knowledge to dispute bills themselves, ensuring they are negotiating from a position of strength. This is particularly important for women, who often feel powerless when dealing with medical billing departments and insurance companies. Many patients are unaware that they have the right to challenge a bill, and even when they do, they may lack the confidence to do so effectively. By providing structured support, Patient Fairness helps women take control of their financial well-being.

Host Cyrus Webb welcomes Matthew Ungs, founder and creator of Patient Fairness, to discuss helping individuals lower or eliminate unfair medical bills.

“Patients need to realize they are consumers. The hospitals, the physicians, are sellers. Both seller and buyer have a role in a transaction, and one doesn’t take precedent over the other. If there wasn’t a meeting of the minds, and [prices and other terms] weren’t disclosed [by the provider to patient in advance], don’t let the provider just dictate to you what’s going to happen [with the medical bill].”

Patient Fairness:

A Revolutionary Platform Leveraging Technology to Fight Unfair Medical Bills

“Simply asking a provider to negotiate a lower price is not likely to achieve the best outcome for a patient. We help the patient dispute the bill, and then provide guidance, tools, and insights for the patient to decide what outcome is fair for the dispute, and how to achieve that outcome.”

Patient Fairness Leads the Charge Against Unfair Medical Billing

"Patient Fairness is focused on helping our customers to get fair treatment in medical billing by offering tools, guidance, and support to patients to dispute problem medical bills so to reduce or eliminate what is owed.

Patients are consumers, but many providers treat them like piggy banks from which they can extract money through medical bills without getting patients’ advance agreement on specific services and prices."

Making Healthcare Billing More Fair for Patients in Tennessee and Beyond

"Ungs sees [Patient Fairness] as more than just a business; it’s a movement toward giving patients a voice. Patient Fairness was created to assist people in evaluating and disputing medical bills when they seem unjust. Patients are encouraged to question their bills and challenge what doesn’t seem fair."

Billing Backlash:

How Americans are Fighting Unfair Medical Charges

"With the help of services like Patient Fairness ... patients have an easier path to advocate for fair treatment... When patients stand up against inflated or incorrect charges, it sends a strong message to providers about the importance of billing integrity."

Patient Fairness:

Empowering Texas Patients to Fight Unfair Medical Bills

Patient Fairness

Founder Matt Ungs Shares How to

Lower or Eliminate Medical Bills

Making The Healthcare System Fair Again!

Patient Fairness:

Empowering Patients and Reforming Healthcare

US Business Company Spotlight:

Matthew Ungs and Patient Fairness

Disrupting Healthcare Billing: How Patient Fairness is Changing the Business of Medical Costs

MEDICAL BILLING NEWS

Keep abreast of news and information on medical billing and its impact on patients and consumers.

Current Month

The CFPB wanted medical debt to be left off credit reports. That’s changed under Trump

.- WBHM

Private equity created a ‘nightmare’ in CT hospitals, staff say. Lawmakers seek to prevent a recurrence

- Hartford Courant

‘How is this not price-gouging?’: Hospital drug markups spark legislation, anger

Vermont hospitals are charging more than five times the average sales price for outpatient drugs — the highest markup in the nation by a wide margin. Lawmakers are seeking to cap those prices.

- VT Digger

Pressure from powerful hospital lobby prompts lawmakers to limit proposed merger crackdown

Democratic lawmakers have narrowed the scope of a proposed crackdown on hospital mergers and acquisitions, focusing it on private equity and excluding nonprofit operators from additional oversight after pushback from the industry’s powerful lobby.

- Spotlight PA

How California can reform medical billing so patients aren’t overwhelmed with debt

.- CalMatters

6 Things Debt Collectors Don’t Want You To Know About Medical Debt

These six things about medical debt might surprise you.

- FinanceBuzz

Clear-Cut Hospitalization Bills

There is no longer any one price for a medical service that applies to all patients. It depends on many factors.

- Eagle Times

Delay in medical debt rule stirs expert debate

.A new rule to keep most medical debt off credit reports, approved by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has been delayed until June 15th due to a lawsuit by two trade groups.

- KLAS

Outpatient Bills Keep Rising as 'Upcoding' Becomes the Norm

Alli Oakes, executive director of research at Trilliant Health, shared that upcoding is a “prime example” of healthcare waste—where visits are billed at increasing levels of intensity without clinical justification.

- Managed Healthcare Executive

Proposed Fair Pricing Act caps hospital bills at 150% of Medicare

Democratic legislators joined a coalition of affordable healthcare advocates to talk about their Fair Pricing Act on Tuesday. Senate Finance Chair Liz Krueger made the case for saving New Yorkers an alleged $1 billion a year by limiting how much hospitals can charge for routine outpatient care..

- WROC Rochester

Nonprofit hospitals are obligated to offer discounted health care, but some patients slip through cracks

.A CBS News analysis of IRS data found some nonprofit hospitals in Philadelphia and across the country attempt to collect hundreds of millions of dollars a year from low-income patients.

- CBS News Phildelphia

PROS & CONS: Using credit cards to pay big medical bills

- 2 News Oklahoma

Man Says His Roommate 'Stole' His Cake, Then Demanded He Pay His Hospital Bill After Having an Allergic Reaction

Apparently I ‘poisoned him' " the Redditor writes in his recent post

- People

Face the Facts: State lawmakers battle over bill meant to curb rising healthcare costs

Sen. Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor), who is also physician, explains his concerns with a proposal to cap out-of-network charges. He went so far as to call it a “disaster.” The plan, proposed by the governor, is intended to limit skyrocketing health care costs. But opponents say it will end up harming patients and providers in the long run.

- NBC CT

Have you gotten a surprise medical bill? This is what you need to know to fight them

- WSB-TV 2

Medical Bills Don’t Belong on Your Credit Report

- Counter Punch

Can debt forgiveness erase medical debt?

- CBS News

Ohio bill would ease impact of medical debt

This is paragraph text. Click it or hit the Manage Text button to change the font, color, size, format, and more. To set up site-wide paragraph and title styles, go to Site Theme.A just introduced Ohio bill with support across the political aisle would bar wage garnishment, cap interest rates, and block reports to credit agencies when it comes to medical debt.

- The Blade

Medical bill errors: Consumer groups say it happens more than you think

.- WSOC

Effort to expand protection against ‘surprise’ ambulance bills passed by Colorado lawmakers, awaits Governor Polis’ approval

- KKTV

Brooklyn woman questions credit score drop

It’s important to understand what impacts your credit score and what to do if you think there’s a mistake.

- WNBC

Bipartisan bill would help Ohioans pay off their medical debt, but not eliminate it

The bill would lower the maximum interest rate for medical debt to 3% per year

- Ohio Capital Journal

NC House unanimously caps costs for emergency ambulance rides

.- Carolina Journal

Yes, you can negotiate with bill collectors

- First Aid Kit

Long Island teacher deals with medical bill dispute

For more than a year and a half, a teacher from Patchogue says she’s been fighting a medical bill that she argues she doesn’t owe

- WNBC

Health care pricing must be fair in N.Y.

.- New York Daily News

South Bend man who survived brain cancer wrongly receives thousands in medical bills

- WNDU 16 News

‘I was dumbfounded’: Minneapolis mother hit with $24K bill for daughter’s allergy test — why patients across the US are suddenly facing massive bills for routine medical care

.- Moneywise

What could happen if ban on medical debt in credit reports is lifted?

- Straight Arrow News

CO Senate Passes Bill to Prevent Surprise Balance Billing

The Colorado state senate unanimously passed a bill aimed at protecting residents from surprise ambulance billing,

- FOX 31

The Patient Expected a Free Checkup. The Bill Was $1,430

.- KFF Health News

Hospitals face more pressure for transparency in prices, and lower prices

This is paragraph text. Click it or hit the Manage Text button to change the font, color, size, format, and more. To set up site-wide paragraph and title styles, go to Site Theme.President Trump has issued an executive order calling for health systems to make it easier for consumers to compare prices. Some also want to address wide variances in prices.

- Chief Healthcare Executive

'Denied. Denied. Denied': This Florida woman’s insurer didn’t pay a $150K bill for ‘medically necessary’ surgery — after telling her they would. Here's how the provider's story changed

After undergoing a medically necessary surgery on her colon, Madeline Rogers of Zephyrhills, northeast of Tampa, was shocked to discover that she was stuck with a $150,000 bill due to a denied insurance claim.

- Moneywise

Know your rights: Medical billing tips and resources to protect your health and money

As health care costs increase and many consumers are watching their spending amid economic concerns, some may put off needed medical care due to financial constraints.

- ABC15 Arizona

Grandfather hit with $92K surgery bill after health insurance mix-up

.- ABC 7 New York

More than 400 nonprofit hospitals chase down patients eligible for free care

For poorest patients at hundreds of nonprofit hospitals, financial pain follows medical care

- CBS News

Capitol Beat: Medical debt bill heads to Gov. Scott

The Vermont House of Representatives unanimously approved S.27, a proposal to eliminate up to $100 million in medical debt for low- and moderate-income Vermonters and remove medical debt from credit scores.

- Rutland Herald

Price limits, nonprofit status threats for Indiana's 'big five' hospital systems sent to governor

- WFYI

Minnesota lawmakers propose ban on facility fees that trouble patients, increase spending

Hospitals warn that a ban could siphon as much as $1 billion from Minnesota providers and hasten clinic closures statewide.

- Minnesota Star Tribune

Hospitals sue patients over medical debt even though they qualified for relief

More than 400 nonprofit hospitals nationwide used debt collection tactics and lawsuits against patients who should have qualified for charity care, CBS News found.

- CBS News

6 Ways To Avoid Getting Stuck With a Surprise Medical Bill

- Yahoo Finance

A look into medical bill debt in Michigan

- CBS News Detroit

Hospital ‘price caps’ passes out of House, Senate for the last time

- The Indiana Capital Chronicle

Winning a Two-Year Fight Over a Bogus Bill

- An Arm and a Leg podcast

Hospitals’ Lobbying Frustrates Montana Lawmakers Who Sought To Boost Oversight

.-KFF Health News

Oregon Senate advances bill to shield consumers from medical debt on credit reports