Our goal is to provide resources to make billing as easy to understand
as possible for patients.
We know billing and insurance matters can be stressful, but we want to
offer as much information as possible to make the process stress-free.
The nationally based Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA)
developed the guide below to aid patients in understanding their hospital charges.
Questions about your bill? Call (217) 466-4517
Workman’s Comp, Meals on Wheels, Private Pay:
(217) 466-4298
(Published by the Healthcare Financial Management Association [HFMA])
Standard Charges Explained
Hospital charges are the amounts set before any discounts. Hospitals are
required by the federal government to utilize uniform charges as the starting
point for all bills. Charges are based on what type of care was provided
and can differ from patient to patient for the same service depending
on any complications or different treatment provided due to the patient's
health. Therefore, actual charges for a specific patient will differ from
the listed standard charges.
These charges represent the standard charges for procedures and diagnosis-related
groups. The charge is for care without complications.
Actual charges may be different for specific patients due to the following:
Medical condition
Length of time spent in surgery or recovery
Necessary specific equipment
Supplies or medication
Complications requiring unanticipated procedures or
Illinois rural healthcare facilities, such as Horizon Health, provide discounts
and financial assistance to patients in need. The amount of assistance
depends on several factors, including income and family size. These discounts
are available by completing a financial need assistance application. For
additional information, please contact the Hospital’s Financial
Assistance Coordinator:
(217) 466-4257. Learn more about
Financial Assistance.
Cost Estimates
Requests for cost estimates should be directed to Central Scheduling,
(217) 466-4343. Cost estimates are not a quote, or a guarantee, of what the charges will
be for a specific patient's care. Learn more about
Up-Front Cost Estimates.
Quality Care
An important component for choosing a health care provider is determining
quality of care. Your doctor can be a helpful resource in choosing where
to obtain care. Further Medicare hospital-specific quality outcome measures
are located on the
Hospital Compare website.
To compare hospital median charges for nearly 50 major diagnoses, quality
and patient satisfaction metrics in Illinois, visit the
Illinois Hospital Report Card.
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