(InvestigateTV) — This Week on InvestigateTV: Hospitals across the country are supposed to post their prices online. But Rachel DePompa found many make that information difficult to find. Plus, a new law supposed to help keep medical bills down does not cover a common emergency expense. WHERE TO WATCH ICYMI – Watch last week’s episode.
The Price You Pay: The federal government requires hospitals to release the prices of their most common procedures in an effort to bring transparency to patients and families. But our team has found many hospitals make that information difficult to find – and even more difficult for a consumer to decipher. Our team looked at the largest hospitals in the country and found price calculators on a little more than 75% of websites; however, they’re hard to find and sometimes require entering personal information to use – or require the download of files that need a special computer program to open. We talk to consumers about their medical bill experiences – and take concerns to a senator and the American Hospital Association.
Costly Care: Ambulance Bills: Some insurance companies don’t have in-network ambulance providers – and what that often means for patients is big bills. While the recent No Surprises Act helped force some out-of-network bills down, that new law doesn’t apply to ground emergency transportation. We speak to a woman about her confusing and costly ambulance bill for her daughter’s hospital transfer. Plus – we sit down with a woman who’s on the federal advisory committee to look for a national solution to surprise ambulance billing.
HIV Reckless Conduct: A Georgia woman thought she was dying from cancer. But as her condition rapidly declined doctors found what was ultimately killing her was HIV. In their search for answers, the family found the condition had been undiagnosed and untreated for at least five years and that the person accused of giving it to her was someone she knew. And police believe there could be more victims.
Watching Your Wallet – Money Secrets: Two in five partnered Americans say they’ve withheld or even lied about financial information to a significant other, according to a new NerdWallet survey. In this Watching Your Wallet, Consumer Investigator Rachel DePompa takes a look at the results of the survey and what consumers can do to change their ways.
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