Eric Jones Law

Patients who need hospital care, but are unable to pay for it, may be eligible for free or reduced fee care at local hospitals through HCAP or hospital financial assistance programs. For both programs, the patient must fill out an application and provide proof of income.

Hospital Care Assurance Program (HCAP)
Under an Ohio law, HCAP (Ohio Administrative Code 5101:3-2-0717), hospitals are required to “provide, without charge to the individual, basic, medically necessary hospital-level services” for patients at or below the federal poverty level.

To be eligible for HCAP:

1. You must be an Ohio resident, and
2. You are not a recipient of the Medicaid program, and
3. Your family income is at or below the 2007 Federal Poverty Guidelines.

Prior hospital bills, paid or unpaid, may be covered by HCAP. Patients can apply for HCAP up to 3 years after they are notified about it. Patients should contact the hospital’s billing department about prior bills, and ask to apply for HCAP – even if the bill has already been sent to collections. If a patient paid a bill but was eligible for HCAP, they may be reimbursed.

Hospital Financial Assistance Programs
For patients who do not qualify for HCAP, all local hospitals have their own financial assistance programs. Since these programs are voluntary, each hospital has different rules and procedures.

These programs cover hospital services only
Both HCAP and hospital financial assistance programs cover only hospital charges, not bills from non-hospital providers (such as x-rays, radiologists, and other medical providers who are not hospital staff members). However, many doctors may reduce or drop their fees when told that the patient qualified for HCAP. Patients should ask hospital billing departments to provide them with documentation stating they qualified for HCAP or other programs. The patient can then share this documentation with non-covered providers.
http://www.uhcanohio.org/newsletter/reports/fact_columbus.html