Pennsylvania hospital closure may drive up out-of-pocket costs for employees

As Philadelphia's Hahnemann University Hospital winds down services and prepares to close, some staff members with employer health coverage through Hahnemann's parent company may face higher out-of-pocket costs, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Thousands of people employed by St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia and Hahnemann are covered under a health plan through the hospitals' owner, Philadelphia Academic Health System. PAHS is owned by American Academic Health System, which is part of El Segundo, Calif.-based Paladin Healthcare.

Hahnemann is the health plan's only adult "Tier 1" hospital, which means it is a preferred hospital for the health plan. Therefore, members pay less out of pocket for services at Hahnemann. St. Christopher's is also considered a Tier 1 hospital, but it only treats children, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The closure, which included an early shutdown of the hospital's maternity ward, has forced St. Christopher's employees like Kathy Lui — a nurse who was planning on delivering her baby at Hahnemann for no out-of-pocket costs — to move their care elsewhere, like Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Thomas Jefferson is a Tier 2 hospital under the insurance plan, meaning Ms. Lui will likely pay at least $2,800 in a deductible and copay for her care, according to the report.

Read more here.

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