Nearly half of the states in the U.S. have urged hospitals to implement a policy not to charge patients for never-events.
Since February, this list of providers has doubled, according to an article from MSNBC.
The errors many providers are including on their never-event lists include:
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Operating on the wrong body part
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Operating on the wrong person
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Giving someone the wrong blood type
A July study by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality showed that preventable errors like these cost employers nearly $1.5 billion a year. Healthcare experts say this, along with CMS’s decision to not pay for certain preventable errors starting Oct. 1, has driven the trend private insurers cutting payments.
CMS is also urging state Medicaid agencies to join in the trend. So far Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania all have policies. Private insurers with cutting payments for never events include Cigna, Aetna and Blue Cross Blue Shield.
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