St. Marys Hospital Medical Center - ABC for Health

What is it?

St. Mary’s Hospital, part of SSM Health Care, partners with ABC for Health, a not-for-profit public interest law firm, to provide advocacy in financial and legal health care issues. The partnership also provides proactive health benefits counseling services to help patients secure all available public and private health coverage resources. When needed, an ABC for Health benefits advocate meets patients on-site at St. Mary’s Hospital to help patients complete the paperwork and to provide advocacy support for patients who need help reviewing and securing both public and private health coverage.

Who is it for?

ABC for Health services prioritize uninsured and underinsured patients, yet will assist with all patients. Low-income self-pay patients are carefully screened and, if they are found not eligible for certain public benefits, receive financial counseling services and are reviewed for the St. Mary’s Hospital charity care program.

Why do they do it?

St. Mary’s has a strong tradition of community service. ABC for Health’s mission is to help families obtain and maintain a way to finance their health care. Proactive health benefits counseling helps patients as well as the hospital by improving continuity of care and in securing difficult-to-obtain third-party reimbursements. In 2012, ABC helped identify more than $6.3 million in coverage benefits for patients of St. Mary’s, which received an average of almost $30 in reimbursement for every $1 invested in health benefits counseling. The assistance helps families to become better informed consumers, reducing their stress about health care coverage and allowing them to give greater attention to the health needs of their children. St. Mary’s Hospital refers patients to ABC for Health to fully explore coverage options and to help investigate wrongful denials and terminations of Medicaid or insurance coverage that could result in medical debt.

Impact

Since 2005, the partnership between St. Mary’s and ABC for Health has secured more than $32 million in third-party reimbursements. Read more online at www.mycoverageplan.com.

Contact: Steve Sparks
Regional Director, Marketing and Public Relations
Telephone: 608-258-6654
E-mail: Steve_Sparks@ssmhc.com