As ranks of uninsured grow, charity care can be hard to come by at many hospitals

"“I had my car and a basket of clothes,” Roberts recalled. “Medical bills were not something I could have afforded.” Roberts sought financial assistance from CentraCare, the St. Cloud-based health system that treated her. It's a nonprofit charity that receives millions of dollars in federal, state, and local tax breaks. In exchange, it's obliged to offer charity care to patients who can't afford their medical bills. But Roberts said CentraCare told her she made too much to qualify."

"Then CentraCare sued her last year because she hadn't paid off all the debt. “They're supposed to be a nonprofit,” Roberts said. “It's like, 'Come on!'” Roberts instead scrimped on groceries and Christmas gifts for her kids and paid off more than $6,000 over two years. The case reflects how charity care eligibility can leave patients responsible for substantial balances even after seeking help."

"A sliver of financial aid CentraCare earmarks just a tiny fraction of its budget for helping patients with medical bills they can't pay, but it's not alone in that, a Minnesota Star Tribune-KFF Health News investigation found. Minnesota's hospitals and health systems are among the least charitable in the country, the investigation found, providing less financial aid as a percentage of their operating budgets on average than hospitals in almost every other state."

"The investigation drew on a detailed review of every hospital charity care program in the state, an analysis of five years of hospital financial data, and dozens of interviews with patients, hospital executives and state officials. Nationally, hospitals spend an average of about 2.4% of t"

Cori Roberts was diagnosed with early-stage cervical cancer and returned to work after a divorce, earning $41,000 a year. Even with insurance, she received more than $8,000 in medical bills and said she could not afford them. She sought charity assistance from CentraCare, a nonprofit health system that receives major tax breaks and is expected to provide charity care. She was told her income was too high to qualify. She reduced spending, paid off more than $6,000 over two years, and was later sued for remaining debt. A Minnesota investigation found hospitals and health systems in the state are among the least charitable in the country, offering less financial aid relative to operating budgets than most other states.

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