Posted on 07/29/2017 7:54:18 AM PDT by Lorianne
Betty La France found a way to deal with a doctor who demanded she pay her entire bill upfront because the state could not be counted on to pay insurance reimbursement: She stopped going.
While IL leaders waged a two-year budget battle, the state fell years behind in reimbursing medical providers for their services, skimping physicians and dentists even if their patients were up-to-date with their premiums.
At public universities, officials and workers say some doctors and dentists, particularly those outside an insurance plan's provider network, increasingly asked patients to pick up the state's tab during the impasse. Some physicians, like La France's, required full payment in advance. Some sent outstanding bills directly to debt collection agencies. And some simply refused to accept insurance from state employees.
medical providers felt the pain too. Advocate Health Care, the state's largest hospital network, imposed a hiring freeze in the spring, citing the budget impasse. Company executives also pointed to the state's insurance payment delays and low reimbursement rates in announcing $200 million in cuts in May.
The state now faces a $5 billion backlog of unpaid group health insurance claims as of June 30, according to the Governor's Office of Management and Budget. The July 6 budget agreement sets aside funding to cover new insurance claims, but relies heavily upon different forms of borrowing to try to clear the deficit. Worse, the longer health insurance bills sit unpaid, the more interest accrues, ultimately costing the state hundreds of millions more.
the state is grappling with roughly $15 billion in overdue bills, a tally that has nearly tripled since Gov. Bruce Rauner took office in 2015.
During the impasse, campuses laid off hundreds of workers, imposed steep program cuts and delayed maintenance to cope with the prolonged drought in state support.
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
Communist utopia.
But civil servants and Party of Government members still get their gold plated pensions and benefits and payoffs and payouts to corporate friends. This is how things worked under ones like Brezhnev, Andropov, and Chernenko in Soviet Russia.
If GOV. RAUNER was as ambitious in fighting for righteousness as he is the budget, ILLINOIS would make a turn around.
First things first, GOV. RAUNER. VETO the transgender birth certificate bill and HB 40 that allows unlimited abortions at any stage in a pregnancy (including partial birth abortion) for Medicaid and government workers and redefines a fetus as a non human.
ILLINOIS is a cursed state because of the abominable laws that have been passed. Only repentance and a return to GOD will solve ILLINOIS’ woes.
But...but ...everyone loves them some Obamacare.
THIS is why government should never be involved in health care.
And Rauner, the only Republican that holds an office with any power, will get blamed for all of it. I think Republicans should just vacate the state, if they are able. It is a DEMOCRAT problem. So, leave the problems to the Democrats.
Don’t worry. Single-payer will be *great*!
/s
Why don’t they just sign up for the Best Health Care in America, Obamacare
I’m rather surprised that the Chicago Tribune writers didn’t use the word “Venezuela” in their article.
There is no Budget backlog... Illinois is broke!
No, what needs to happen is that states need to be broken up. One or two metropolitan areas hold power over the rest of the state. Either that, or there should be a state-wide electoral college system, where the Governor and U.S. Senators have to win a majority of their counties in order to win.
“And Rauner, the only Republican that holds an office with any power, will get blamed for all of it. I think Republicans should just vacate the state, if they are able. It is a DEMOCRAT problem. So, leave the problems to the Democrats”
Chicago/Cook County are the killers. Democrats have run legislature forever. Even many republicans are just as bad..15 of the bastards voted to override Rauner’s recent veto of a huge income tax hike, It was overridden.
Our nation, including the state of Illinois and its leaders have fundamentally rejected the absolutes and clear teaching of God’s Holy Word. . .a manual for righteous living. Murdering babies and changing God’s purpose for man and woman are not good ideas. Leaders who have been given the charge to make good decisions would do well to seek God’s Wisdom and Direction. The current state of the state of Illinois should be a red flag that leadership needs to immediately seek Divine answers to its problems. Leaders are held to a higher standard.
No, no, no; they balanced the budget by borrowing money. That's an imaginary lifer politician trick that Illinois has been using since Rod Blago was governor. Since the local media does not understand it, the public is told the budget is balanced. And the bills don't get paid. But the unions do.
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