Evening star., 1947-01-06
Group Hospital
Face
Higher Rates
Increase Will Bring
Additional Service,
President Indicates

Joseph Hines, president of Group
disqualification, Inc. said today he
had every reason to believe the or
ganization's payments to hospital for
CHI patients would be increased
very soon."
He added that if the hospital pay.
ments were increased to consider
able extent, the 1900 subscribers
to Group disqualification probably
would have to pay more.
An increase in subscribers rates,
however, is UP to the Group HoSpi-
talization Board of Trustees, he
pointed out.
The is member hospitals of Group
disqualification have been seeking an
increase for months, it was disclosed
yesterday. to make up for rising
costs Of food. personnel and hospital
supplies.
Added Services Indicated.
Mr.. Hines disclosed that Group
disqualification not only was plan
ming to rewrite its contracts with the
hospitals, but also was proposing
new contract to subscribers.
The subscribers contract, he said,
has been completed but has not been
announced pending a decision on in
creased payments to hospitals. While
Mr.. Hines would not reveal the
terms of the new subscribers con-
tract, he indicated it would provide
additional services.
| Asked II larger payments to the
hospital could not be taken care of
by the reserve Group disqualification
has built up, Mr.. Hines said the
nonprofit organization could not
afford to eat up its reserve because
we, must protect subscribers in
event of an epidemic"
Other Changes Urged.
While the Hospital Council of the
National Capital Area has been con-
centrating on getting an increase
in Group Hospitalization's payments
to the hospitals, 1t was learned that
a special committee report also rec
commended other changes in the
CHI contracts.
These included reviewing existing
contracts to determine inequities."
Cited by the special committee was
the fact that after patient has
used up the 81 days of disqualification
to which he Is entitled, the hospital
is required to give him additional
service at 10 per cent discount, for
which Group disqualification pays
nothing Committee members also
mentioned another provision requir-
ling hospitals to give CHI subscribe
ers private room If no semiprivate
rooms are available.
/ Some hospital superintendents
contend that CHI patients should
be put in wards If no semiprivate
rooms are available, unless they
ELECT togpay the difference between
Il iemiprfuate and private roonss
: Points Under Review.
The special committee. composed
of hospital superintendents, also
Recommended that Group Hospitali-
zation should consider the possibility
of increasing premium rates to SUBJ
scribers and should inform the SUBJ
scribers fully as to how Group Hos
!, pitalization pays the hospitals
Mr.. Hines indicated some of these
points were being reviewed by a
Group disqualification Committee re-
writing the contracts with the
hospitals.
He said the committee now had
the information it needed from the
hospitals to proceed with study Of
rate adjustments. Group Hospitals
zation's Board of Trustees meets to-
morrow but Mr.. Hines said an.
|nouncement of rate adjustments
1 probably would not be forthcoming
until the committee had more time
| to make it's recommendations.