North Carolina residents may have various opinions when it comes to health insurance. Nonetheless, most individuals can agree that costs associated with medical care can become burdensome to deal with at times. When parties accrue considerable medical debt, they may feel that their ability to make ends meet is substantially hindered by these outstanding balances.
It was recently reported that numerous hospitals across the country have seen an increase in unpaid bills. This increase appears to relate to insurers putting more responsibility on patients to cover costs. For one hospital chain that has facilities across the country, a 4 to 5 percent increase took place when it came to uninsured admissions. Additionally, another operator also indicated an increase in unpaid medical expenses.
Though the number of uninsured individuals in the country has reached an all-time low at under 9 percent, insurance coverage could soon be an issue again. Governmental decisions are apparently playing a role in the impacts of insurance and care costs. At this time, President Trump and Congress have not been able to come to terms regarding cost-sharing reductions, and as a result, individuals covered under the Affordable Care Act could see cost increases.
Being unable to pay for medical expenses can not only act as a financial burden for many individuals, but it could also have them questioning whether they should seek medical attention in the first place. Rather than put off seeking needed care, North Carolina residents may want to consider ways in which to deal with their outstanding debt balances. Information on bankruptcy and how it could impact medical debt may prove useful to interested individuals.
Source: Forbes, “Unpaid Medical Bills Rise As Congress Weighs Obamacare Fix“, Bruce Japsen, Sept. 4, 2017
