Posted by Roni on March 26, 1998 at 17:48:45:
In Reply to: Re: Question 3 posted by Dat on March 26, 1998 at 17:27:34:
: : Apparently physicians are restricted when offering professional courtesy. "If you cannot reduce the cost of care for anyone else in your practice, you cannot reduce it for physicians." This rule is established by private insurers as well as the federgovernment. There are also laws regarding waiving co-pays, offering discounts, and taking kickbacks. There is not a problem, however, if a dr should desire to waive an entire charge for care unless it is part of a fraudulent scheme.
: why is it o.k to waive the entire charge but not a discount?
discount is okay but it must apply to the entire charge, not just the co-pay. Also once an insurer knows you will accept a discounted payment they can then choose to pay the lower price from then on. So the doc needs to be careful. Insurance cos don't have a problem with waiving the entire amount because that would reduce costs for them.