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Affordable Care Act could remove $400,000 from bad debt at PCH

Hospital Administrator Tom Hudgins said a quick calculation by CFO Kara Carson shows that if every person who was written off as a bad debt in the last year is able to obtain health insurance with a $2,000 deductible under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Pinckneyville Community Hospital would add more than $400,000 in revenue.

The (ACA) defined 'affordable' as no more than $101.88 per month for an individual. Hudgins said the ACA affordability figure was based on a 30 hour per week minimum wage job. The ACA did not specify what was affordable for dependents. Due to the new rules, the hospital board voted to no longer forgive the deductible for employees who had medical procedures done at Pinckneyville Community Hospital. Everyone will pay their deductibles no matter where the procedures are done which will allow the hospital to reduce premiums to the level dictated by the ACA.

A new deductible and co-pay schedule was also approved. It is a tiered system and will be based on health screenings conducted by an independent firm. This is the first time that employees are required to participate in the health screening in order to be insured. Screenings had been voluntary in the past.

When the board voted to require screenings, it was with the intention of using the scores to place employees in a tiered premium program. The ACA does not allow premium tiers, but does allow a tier system for deductibles and co-pays.

Health screenings for employees will be done later this month. The evaluations will determine whether an employee has met the goal which is a score of zero or less. The hospital will be told only yes or no, but will not have access to the scores.

Employees who participated previous screenings will be evaluated based on whether or not they met the goal from the last screening.

Human Resources Director Christie Gajewski said a survey of employee attitudes toward the wellness program was just completed. She will have a report of the results for the board at the next meeting. Preliminary results showed employees desire a buddy system to help them meet fitness goals.

In other business, the board:

• adopted a mental health hotline program for employees called Behavioral Health Management. The program is available 24 hours via phone or computer. The program primarily offers stress management help. Employees had previously indicated the need for a stress management program. The cost will be $1.65 per employee per month.

• approved a one-year contract with Swank Healthcare Services for online education programs. Cost for the system will be $10,000 for the year. Employees will be able to use the system to meet continuing education requirements and the hospital can input their own material for employees for safety training.

• voted to renew property insurance with CHUB for $40,779 per year for the next year and to pay an additional $9,278 for excess earthquake insurance from Lloyds of London through Ryan Turner Specialty Insurance.

• approved changes to the policy manual requiring employees to inform a supervisor of any potential drug-induced impairment. The policy covers all over-the-counter and prescription medication that has a warning label listing side-effects.