Topic: Hit by higher prices for protective gear, doctors and dentists want insurers to pay
Treating patients has become more expensive during the pandemic, and doctors and dentists don’t want to be on the hook for all the new costs.
For instance, the box of 100 gloves that cost $2.39 in February 2020 costs $30 now, said Dr. Judee Tippett-Whyte, president of the California Dental Assn., who has a private dental practice in Stockton.
Her practice used to rely on surgical masks that cost 20 cents each but has upgraded to N95 masks at $2.50 a pop. On top of that, her office is scheduling two or three fewer patients each day to accommodate physical distancing and give staff members time to disinfect between patients, she said.
“We’ve sustained a lot of financial costs,” Tippett-Whyte said. “We shouldn’t have to bear the cost of this for ourselves.”
Her argument raises a fundamental COVID-19 question: Who should pay for pandemic expenses? Should it be healthcare providers contending with new pandemic-era protocols or insurance companies, which may pass on their additional costs to customers in the form of higher premiums?
California’s dentist and doctor lobbies say insurance companies are flush with cash after collecting premiums during the pandemic but paying fewer claims than usual — and should foot the bill. The California Medical Assn., which represents doctors, has sponsored legislation that would require insurers to reimburse medical and dental practices for pandemic-related expenses such as personal protective equipment, disinfectant and the staff time required to screen patients for symptoms before an appointment.
A request by doctors to bill Medicaid and Medicare for supplies and other pandemic-related costs recently failed at the federal level. But in Washington state, a new law sponsored by the state doctors’ lobby requires private health insurers to reimburse a portion of those costs.
Topic Discussed: Hit by higher prices for protective gear, doctors and dentists want insurers to pay
