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CHC pays GHLIP debts to 2 Hawaii hospitals
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Posted on Feb 06 2001
The Commonwealth Health Center’s Medical Referral Office settled on behalf of the Group Health and Life Insurance more than $1.1 million debts, incurred by its subscribers’ off-island medical treatments, to two Hawaii-based hospitals.
GHLIP Manager Dolores Moore disclosed Medical Referral Office paid Straub Clinic and Hospital at least $443,958.86 and Queen’s Medical Center with $773,212.03.
The group health will settle the amount with the Medical Referral Office through staggered payment as GHLI subscribers remit their monthly contribution to the program.
For the past months, GHLI has been trying to raise the amount to settle its outstanding debts to Queen’s and Straub until the Medical Referral decided to pay the amount on behalf of the agency.
However, Mr. Moore disclosed there are now more than 295 off-island and on-island service providers awaiting settlement of services rendered to program subscribers.
Outstanding debts to these providers amount to at least $4 million while Queen’s and Straub’s forwarded medical charges for year 2000 were estimated to reach more than $290,000.
In August 1999, GHLI disclosed the agency owed more than $5 million to on and off-island service providers and has processed a total of $1.7 million claims in August 2000.
Present claims to be paid out to the Honolulu hospitals, Ms. Moore said, were already processed by the GHLI but funds are yet to be allocated.
Problems stemmed when subscribers utilized medical treatments amounting more than their GHLIP premiums can handle, in addition to alleged unperformed and unnecessary services.
Ms. Moore said the agency has returned more than a million worth of claims to Straub and Queen’s to recheck the charges billed to GHLIP subscribers.
Several subscribers were asked to settle hospital charges that are not covered by their insurance premiums.
