Laredo medical providers receive money for uninsured Covid care: Who got what? - KGNS

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) – Back on March 18th, Laredo city officials sent out a press release announcing that effective immediately, Curative–their go-to vendor–would no longer provide free Covid tests for uninsured people. The reason? The federal government announcing no more available funds to pay back medical providers, like Curative and local hospitals, for free Covid services for the uninsured.

So, with the pandemic still lingering, and threats of more subvariants headed our way, how will those without insurance afford to receive life-saving care? That’s the question KGNS news posed to our three local hospitals, after hearing from an uninsured person who says it’s back to Mexico for him and his family.

“And obviously, we are very, I would say cultura Mexicana, where it’s more like, you tough it out. Tough out the Covid because many people are maybe dying, but what are your symptoms, and if your symptoms are light, then you tough it out.”

This married father of three, who we’ll call Erik, did not grow up having health insurance. When needing medical care, he and his family did what many others did—go to Nuevo Laredo.

“We’ve gone to see the dentist, we’ve gone to see, you know, our pediatrician, we’ve gone to see a regular doctor, we’ve gone to get braces, stuff like that, everybody’s gone to get their stuff done.”

With Texas leading the nation with the highest number of uninsured people, Erik is not alone in having to find inexpensive healthcare–at least until the Pandemic hit in 2020. That’s when the government set aside billions of dollars to pay for Covid testing, treatment and vaccines for anyone who did not have health insurance.

“I remember going with a family member and asking the lady at the window if she was going to have to pay afterwards and she said, “She doesn’t have health insurance, right?” And I said no, so she said, “She won’t have to pay.”

The federal government went a step further by providing those without health insurance coverage–despite their immigration status and not requiring a Social Security number or Government ID–ensuring those who receive Covid care that it will not affect their immigration status or be shared with immigration agencies. They also made sure that all Covid care hospital bills be sent to the government for payment, and not the patient. A 1-800 number also encourages the uninsured to report any medical provider who refuses to provide free Covid care to the OIG.

So, with Laredo’s proximity to Mexico, and this generous offer from the government, the price tag of claims by Laredo’s three hospitals was steep. The government reimbursing Laredo Medical Center the most at $13.5 million, with an additional $228, 000 to their physician group, and for testing the uninsured, an additional $1.6 million. Doctors Hospital billed almost $8.1 million, with $320,000 to their physician group and $745,000 for Covid tests. Laredo Specialty Hospital billed the government $2.3 million for uninsured care.

The uninsured also found free care and tests at smaller medical providers who were also able to bill the Feds. Some of the highest amounts went to Laredo ER, the Laredo Fire Department and Urgent Care on Del Mar Blvd.

When administering Covid vaccines to the uninsured, the medical provider that billed the highest amount is Curative. They sent the Feds a bill for $6.4 million. After that, Vara Hospice came in at $803,000, then MedCenter Pharmacy at $325,000, and the Laredo Fire department at about $208,000.

With so much money going towards caring for the uninsured, one has to wonder where they’ll now turn to for Covid care with the recent announcement by the government that as of March 22nd, no more claims will be accepted.

We reached out to Laredo’s three hospitals to find out how they plan on helping the uninsured needing Covid care, like Erik and his family.

Doctors hospital saying: “They’ll assist patients in getting qualified for assistance, educate patients about all available options for care, and continue caring for the unfunded population as they say they did prior to the pandemic.”

Meanwhile, Laredo Medical Center elaborated further saying they’ll continue providing Covid tests to their uninsured patients free of charge, and “In addition to our hospital’s existing financial assistance policies, uninsured patients with Covid-19 whose income is below 300% of the federal poverty level will not be billed for Covid treatment.”

Meaning free Covid hospital care at LMC will continue for an uninsured patient who earns less than $40,000 a year. That figure going up based on family size. LMC goes on to say: “Should our area experience another significant surge in Covid-19 activity, the policy will become unsustainable and support {from the federal government} like what HRSA has been providing will be needed again.”

If that were to happen, Erik says it’s back to Nuevo Laredo for him and his family—and a whole lot of prayers.

“If that’s not an option, then we just stick it out at home. and, you know, we pray to God that everything goes well. You know, we isolate for a certain amount of days and keep drinking the vitamins and medicines that they give us from across and of course, like the all good one that every Mexican uses—Vicks—we use the Vicks for everything.”

There are other options the uninsured can consider, including enrolling in Medicaid, looking into the Healthcare Marketplace, finding a federal healthcare clinic in the area and looking into Webb County’s Indigent Program or the City’s Health Department.

As for Covid tests, everyone qualifies for free tests that can be ordered online at covid.gov.

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