I am a physician who has served the Northern Virginia community for over 12 years, and I have seen many trends in health care that aren’t in the best interest of our patients. Hospital consolidations are one such trend, where large systems buy up other hospitals, independent physician offices and freestanding diagnostic and care facilities – and then add extra, unnecessary charges on patients’ medical bills for providing exactly the same services.
I am hopeful this unethical practice will end. Ensuring patients pay the same price for the same service is an important step toward holding prices in check and making health care affordable. Congress is considering proposals to stop these medically unnecessary fees, and to help rein in already unaffordable health care costs.
When a hospital buys up small practices, patients who had seen their doctor there for many years now suddenly find themselves being charged more money to see the same doctor, talk with the same staff and undergo the same tests, treatment and therapies. The only difference in their experience is that the once-independent doctor’s office has now been branded with the large hospital system’s logo – and their medical bill, under this new logo, is more expensive.
