Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, AB's Morning News. Pleasure to welcome doctor Bill Hennessy
(00:03):
to the program. And this item popped up. And we've
heard about and know about the struggles of many people
when it comes to finding affordable and quality healthcare. But
this stat came out that one in three Americans, that's
we're looking at around numbers, ninety million people say they
can't afford to access quality care or even get prescriptions
(00:27):
in some cases. And doctor Hennessy joins us. He is
the billing integrity officer with care Guide, a company that
negotiates outrageous medical bills on behalf of patients. Doctor Hennessy,
it's great to have you with us.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Good morning, Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
One of the things we have chatted about frequently here is,
you know, everybody talks about insurance, the price of that,
and this and that, but you rarely hear about the
outrageous medical costs so going to a doctor or a
hospital visit God forbid. What's the answer here.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
We need to better separate health care from health insurance.
When they're combined, we overpay for both, so the price
is hidden from soup to nuts. So if we're of
commercial working age, A couple interesting statistics ninety nine out
of one hundred er is just need care. We don't
get hospitalized when we're of working age in our thirties,
(01:31):
forties or fifties. Old people do, so we should be
paying cash for a doctor visit or a mammogram or
blood work, the common care items that's not insurance insurances
for a financial catastrophe. If we separated those two, we
do a lot better. If we knew the price of
care before we got care, we do a lot better.
(01:53):
And it's work to get the price of care. You
can't go to a website, so you do have to
call the provider and ask for the cash price, and
if you have insurance, asked for the insurance price. Second
you pick which one you want. You do not have
to use insurance. Keep the most money in your pocket.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
When the stat comes up that one in three can't
afford it, I assume we're talking about people who make
too much money to be on Medicaid or the affordab
looker of Obamacare, but not enough to afford outrageous medical bills.
Is that the cohort we're looking at here?
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yes, and that's the exact of verbers I've use, So
maybe you should be an employee of care Guide too,
so a great job. Yes, you could make too much
for Medicaid, but by most people's standards, you're still for
You're living a paycheck to paycheck and you can't afford
the health insurance that you know you should have, but
you got to put food on the table. There's tens
(02:56):
of millions. There might be five fifty million to eighty
million people in that category. You just described a silver
lining nugget in the Affordable Care Act, which has largely
been unaffordable because the healthcare costs gone up for all
of us. They require that nonprofit hospitals provide free and
discounted care. Most of those are between thirty thousand to
(03:18):
eighty thousand dollars salaries USFA. But you have over five
thousand hospitals that offer financial assistance policies. All the big
brand names do speak with a financial counselor of that
hospital and ask for an application if you're in that range.
(03:38):
One hundred million people qualify for free or discounted care
even if they don't have insurance.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
Okay, give us a little more on that, because I'm
sure a lot of people are listening who either can
benefit from that information or know someone who can't. What's
the process to go through if you're in that category?
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yes, every hospital has a financial counselor office. If you're
making thirty to eighty grand, or if you're on a
coast like a California or the East coast New York, Massachusetts,
it can go up to over one hundred thousand dollars
a year household income. You're entitled to free or steeply
(04:18):
discounted care. You ask the financial counselor office for a
financial assistance application and within thirty days, by federal law,
they have to say yes or no and provide you
an answer. And while you're going through that process, they
are not permitted to send you to collections and you
(04:38):
do not have to pay a dollar for your care.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Well, that's great, you all what bill? Nobody knows that
nobody knows, that's all.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Yeah, it's been around since twenty ten. The Affordable Cares.
It's a two thousand or so page document that that
gem is hidden in there. And care guy, we help
people get that free care they're entitled to under the
federal law.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Well, a lot of financial advisors know this if they
are a comprehensive financial advisor.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
But you're right.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Unless you have one who's good, you're going to miss out.
And that's a shame because the look, we're paying for it,
it's a trillion dollars.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
Might as well use it. Doctor Bill Hennessy here just
for another minute. So your company, how does your company work?
In other words, if somebody contacts you, what happens?
Speaker 2 (05:28):
Well, you know we can help people before care or aftercare,
and the big one is aftercare. We have a hospital
built eraser program. Three steps, that's what it's called because
that's what we do. One do you qualify for free care?
If not, two do you qualify for steeply dis kind
of care? And if not, three you bust your butt.
(05:49):
You make a great salary, but you don't want to
get ripped off. We got two words for you. Sign
here and we take on the hospital and give them
a taste of their own medicine. And a lot of
your bill goes by bike.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
And what do I pay for that? To care guide?
Speaker 2 (06:03):
Yeah, we are packaged in with greater good offerings that
have no out of pocket blood work at Quest Labs
or no out of pocket one thousand plus generic drugs.
So we go with other cost saving solutions in the market.
You can get these health bundles at places like health
FREEDOMUS dot com and it's fifty dollars a month for
(06:26):
a common bundle. There. You can go to our website
CGA saves dot com and at the top it says
get care Guide and you have all of our partners
and you could decide.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
What you like there. Giving us that website one more time.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
DGA saves dot com, which stands for care Guide.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
At the kits wonderful. A lot of hospital administrators are
reaching for the Kopec tape this morning, Doctor Hennessy, Thanks
for your time this morning. My job, Yeah, exactly right,
doctor Bill Hennessy here on AaB morning New
Hey, AB's Morning News. Pleasure to welcome doctor Bill Hennessy
(00:03):
to the program. And this item popped up. And we've
heard about and know about the struggles of many people
when it comes to finding affordable and quality healthcare. But
this stat came out that one in three Americans, that's
we're looking at around numbers, ninety million people say they
can't afford to access quality care or even get prescriptions
(00:27):
in some cases. And doctor Hennessy joins us. He is
the billing integrity officer with care Guide, a company that
negotiates outrageous medical bills on behalf of patients. Doctor Hennessy,
it's great to have you with us.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Good morning, Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
One of the things we have chatted about frequently here is,
you know, everybody talks about insurance, the price of that,
and this and that, but you rarely hear about the
outrageous medical costs so going to a doctor or a
hospital visit God forbid. What's the answer here.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
We need to better separate health care from health insurance.
When they're combined, we overpay for both, so the price
is hidden from soup to nuts. So if we're of
commercial working age, A couple interesting statistics ninety nine out
of one hundred er is just need care. We don't
get hospitalized when we're of working age in our thirties,
(01:31):
forties or fifties. Old people do, so we should be
paying cash for a doctor visit or a mammogram or
blood work, the common care items that's not insurance insurances
for a financial catastrophe. If we separated those two, we
do a lot better. If we knew the price of
care before we got care, we do a lot better.
(01:53):
And it's work to get the price of care. You
can't go to a website, so you do have to
call the provider and ask for the cash price, and
if you have insurance, asked for the insurance price. Second
you pick which one you want. You do not have
to use insurance. Keep the most money in your pocket.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
When the stat comes up that one in three can't
afford it, I assume we're talking about people who make
too much money to be on Medicaid or the affordab
looker of Obamacare, but not enough to afford outrageous medical bills.
Is that the cohort we're looking at here?
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yes, and that's the exact of verbers I've use, So
maybe you should be an employee of care Guide too,
so a great job. Yes, you could make too much
for Medicaid, but by most people's standards, you're still for
You're living a paycheck to paycheck and you can't afford
the health insurance that you know you should have, but
you got to put food on the table. There's tens
(02:56):
of millions. There might be five fifty million to eighty
million people in that category. You just described a silver
lining nugget in the Affordable Care Act, which has largely
been unaffordable because the healthcare costs gone up for all
of us. They require that nonprofit hospitals provide free and
discounted care. Most of those are between thirty thousand to
(03:18):
eighty thousand dollars salaries USFA. But you have over five
thousand hospitals that offer financial assistance policies. All the big
brand names do speak with a financial counselor of that
hospital and ask for an application if you're in that range.
(03:38):
One hundred million people qualify for free or discounted care
even if they don't have insurance.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
Okay, give us a little more on that, because I'm
sure a lot of people are listening who either can
benefit from that information or know someone who can't. What's
the process to go through if you're in that category?
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yes, every hospital has a financial counselor office. If you're
making thirty to eighty grand, or if you're on a
coast like a California or the East coast New York, Massachusetts,
it can go up to over one hundred thousand dollars
a year household income. You're entitled to free or steeply
(04:18):
discounted care. You ask the financial counselor office for a
financial assistance application and within thirty days, by federal law,
they have to say yes or no and provide you
an answer. And while you're going through that process, they
are not permitted to send you to collections and you
(04:38):
do not have to pay a dollar for your care.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Well, that's great, you all what bill? Nobody knows that
nobody knows, that's all.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Yeah, it's been around since twenty ten. The Affordable Cares.
It's a two thousand or so page document that that
gem is hidden in there. And care guy, we help
people get that free care they're entitled to under the
federal law.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Well, a lot of financial advisors know this if they
are a comprehensive financial advisor.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
But you're right.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Unless you have one who's good, you're going to miss out.
And that's a shame because the look, we're paying for it,
it's a trillion dollars.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
Might as well use it. Doctor Bill Hennessy here just
for another minute. So your company, how does your company work?
In other words, if somebody contacts you, what happens?
Speaker 2 (05:28):
Well, you know we can help people before care or aftercare,
and the big one is aftercare. We have a hospital
built eraser program. Three steps, that's what it's called because
that's what we do. One do you qualify for free care?
If not, two do you qualify for steeply dis kind
of care? And if not, three you bust your butt.
(05:49):
You make a great salary, but you don't want to
get ripped off. We got two words for you. Sign
here and we take on the hospital and give them
a taste of their own medicine. And a lot of
your bill goes by bike.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
And what do I pay for that? To care guide?
Speaker 2 (06:03):
Yeah, we are packaged in with greater good offerings that
have no out of pocket blood work at Quest Labs
or no out of pocket one thousand plus generic drugs.
So we go with other cost saving solutions in the market.
You can get these health bundles at places like health
FREEDOMUS dot com and it's fifty dollars a month for
(06:26):
a common bundle. There. You can go to our website
CGA saves dot com and at the top it says
get care Guide and you have all of our partners
and you could decide.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
What you like there. Giving us that website one more time.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
DGA saves dot com, which stands for care Guide.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
At the kits wonderful. A lot of hospital administrators are
reaching for the Kopec tape this morning, Doctor Hennessy, Thanks
for your time this morning. My job, Yeah, exactly right,
doctor Bill Hennessy here on AaB morning New
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