To Self-Insured Health Plans and individuals (that means about everybody)

In the January 9th  edition of Barron’s Dr. Howard Floch, a retired physician in North Carolina, wrote a letter to the editor about Gene Epstein’s (“Saving America Part 5- Prescription for Economic Growth”, December 24th) where Epstein discussed the problem of fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. 

Here’s what Dr. Floch’s letter says:

“A great example of this is health care which includes Medicare, Medicaid and commercial insurance. I am a retired physician whose experience as a provider a patient, and father have proved to me that fraud by way of stuffed billings is rampant. Insurance companies ignore this, as I hear from three friends who have retired as medial directors of a local insurance company, with the excuse that they would not want to challenge providers’ claims.”

If the insurers (in fact administrators) aren’t challenging these claims, those at risk- self insured health plans and individuals with high deductible plans- another form of self-insurance- are paying for it. It’s time for the purchasers of health coverage to take a closer look to see if they get what they pay for.