Facility fees, impact on health care costs under microscope

(The Center Square) – So-called “facility fees” charged to patients at hospital-owned outpatient clinics prompted a spirited debate Tuesday before a state legislative committee.

“Restricting or limiting facility fees would jeopardize patient access to services, reduce hospital capacity to respond to emergencies and threaten the care of vulnerable populations,” said Josh Dobson, CEO of the North Carolina Health Care Association and former state commissioner of the Labor Department.

Rural areas in particular would be hurt if the facility fees were eliminated, Dobson said.

Peter Daniel, executive director at the North Carolina Association of Health Plans, disagreed.

“You are right to look at hospital facility fees in non-hospital environments,” Daniel told legislators.

The fees are appropriate for patients at hospital emergency rooms which are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Daniel said.

“They maintain trauma capacities, specialized equipment and standby staffing,” he ...