How Hospital Charity Care Programs Help You With Medical Bills
In this community resource guide, you will learn about charity care programs that can help you to pay for expensive hospital bills.
Charity care programs are a way for hospitals to help patients who cannot afford to pay their medical bills. These programs provide financial assistance to low-income and uninsured patients so that they can receive the care they need.
In this post, we’ll discuss how hospital charity care programs work and how they can help you with your medical bills.
What Is A Hospital Charity Care Program?
Charity care programs in hospitals offer free or discounted health services to people who cannot afford to pay for them. If you qualify, these programs can pay for “medically necessary” hospital bills like a hospital admission or an ER visit.
Hospital Bills That This Program May Not Cover
Any bills coming from doctors who do not work directly for the hospital may not be covered by a Charity Hospital Program.
While you may have been treated by an anesthesiologist in the hospital they may not be a part of the hospital staff. Doctors who provide treatment at a particular hospital, but are not employees are called independent contractors. You can still receive a bill from these “self-employed doctors” that a charity program will not cover.
How To Ask About A Hospital Charity Program
Each hospital will have a different name for their charity program, but common names include:
- Bridge Assistance Programs
- Financial Assistance Programs
- Indigent Care Programs
- Free Programs For The Uninsured
These are all buzzwords that you can use to get more information about a charity program if you are admitted to a hospital and cannot pay for the cost of treatment.
Does Your Local Hospital Have A Charity Program?
Most major hospitals have financial assistance programs for patients who can’t afford their hospital bills. The easiest way to learn about a charity program is to speak to someone in the hospital billing department. They will be able to explain who the program works and who qualifies for free hospital care.
Other ways to find out about an indigent care program at a hospital are:
- To look for signs in the ER or admissions room. Signs should be posted in these areas that explain more about options uninsured or low income patients have.
- Ask your case manager about these programs while you are being admitted or discharged.
- Hospital websites often have information about charity assistance programs that are offered.
- Sometimes your billing statement will come with information regarding a Bridge Assistance Program.
Who Qualifies For Charity Care?
The main hospital charity care requirements are to be low-income and not be able to pay for the cost of healthcare treatment. Individuals who fit this charity care eligibility criteria are typically uninsured, undocumented, unemployed, or simply have a very low monthly income.
If you have health coverage like private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, you may still get help with paying hospital bills, but your coverage must pay first.
Some patients have high deductible insurance plans that they cannot pay. If you apply for assistance from your hospital there is the possibility that you can get help with that deductible or a copay.
Income Requirements To Qualify For Charity Programs If You Can’t Pay Medical Bills
You must have a low income of under 100% of the FPL or federally poverty level to have a chance of having your hospital bill written off. Your FPL income limit is determined by your household income and household size. Below is an estimate of the FPL that you must satisfy.
| Household Size | Federal Poverty Level |
| 1 | $12,880 |
| 2 | $17,420 |
| 3 | $21,960 |
| 4 | $26,500 |
| 5 | $31,040 |
| 6 | $35,580 |
| 7 | $40,120 |
| 8 | $44,660 |
| For each additional family member, you can add… | $4,540 |
Even if your household income exceeds the amounts above you still may be able to get help paying your hospital bill. You will not get 100% assistance, but you could still be eligible for a discount. The best course of action is to apply for your hospital’s charity program if you believe that you will have a difficult time paying it.
Apply For Charity Care As Soon As Possible
If you know that you cannot pay a hospital bill, apply while you are in the hospital. You can still apply after your discharge, but it’s best to try and do this while you are admitted to the hospital.
Case managers and those in the billing department are already very busy, so the chances of you getting hospital financial assistance may decrease if you leave the hospital and then try applying for help with your hospital bills.
How To Apply For A Hospital’s Charity Program
To apply for help with your hospital bills speak to someone in the hospital billing department. If you are physically able, you have to do this during your admission or the discharge.
If you leave the hospital before applying simply call the billing office and ask if they can mail you a charity care application.
How To Write A Letter To A Hospital For Financial Assistance
In your letter to the hospital for charity care you will want to make the following points:
- Talk about the medical care that you received at the hospital and include the dates.
- Explain that your income falls below the federal poverty line and this prevents you from affording your hospital bill.
- Also, list out monthly expenses that prevent you from paying your hospital bill.
- If you have recently had a hardship (lost a job, death of the head of household, lost health insurance) you can also include this information.
- Offer a solution like a payment arrangement with the amount that you may be able to pay on a monthly basis.
A website called Accc-Cancer.org offers a nice “hardship letter” that you can use as a template to write your own letter to the hospital. You can find that letter below.
After You Apply For Help With Hospital Bills
It takes roughly 14 days to learn if you qualify for a hospital charity care program.
Should your charity application for hospital bills be approved the hospital will let you know how much of the medical bill will be covered. If they deny your application, you can appeal, but you need to do so within 30 days.
Conclusion
If you’re struggling to pay your hospital bills, you may be wondering “what happens if you can’t pay your medical bills”? The good news is that many hospitals offer charity care programs to assist uninsured and low-income patients with their medical bills.
These programs can provide a great deal of financial assistance, so if you have received a hospital bill that you cannot pay, be sure to check and see if your local hospital has a charity care program that can help you out.
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Nick Bryant is the author of Understanding Healthcare Is Half The Battle and a Senior Counselor with 13+ years of experience working in community health and mental health. He enjoys spending time with his family, watching WWE on Friday nights, and working toward a Google Data Analytics certification. If you have additional questions about community resources or government assistance programs, simply leave a comment below and he will follow up as soon as possible.
Seeking for help for a patient through 501c organization . I have video to share
Hi Zainab, contact the hospital where they received treatment at. Specifically, contact the BILLING DEPARTMENT of that hospital. They should have a billing department that specializes in working with uninsured patients. They are not guaranteed to receive a discount, but to have any chance of getting that hospital bill forgiven, the billing department is where to start.