Understanding Charges and Billing

We are committed to helping you understand and prepare for potential out-of-pocket costs related to medical services you or a loved one may receive at our hospital, and we have resources available to assist you. Please contact the hospital at 662-456-3700 at any time to discuss your specific care needs and the potential associated charges. If you are insured, you also should contact your insurer to understand their coverage of services.

In addition, as required by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), our hospital has provided a complete list of charges for all services and items provided by our facility.

The amount listed is not necessarily reflective of your actual financial responsibility. The amount collected by our hospital can be less than the amount on this list for a number of reasons, including discounts negotiated with third party payers like Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial insurance companies as well as patient-specific discounts based upon financial need and other considerations. We recommend that all patients contact their insurer or our business office to discuss their individual situations and determine the potential out-of-pocket costs of their care.

Please contact the hospital at any time with questions, or view our Frequently Asked Questions below.

Common Questions

Where can I find out how much a service is going to cost?

The best way to determine your costs is to discuss your coverage options and needs with your insurer or our hospital. This is the only way to explore your
personal situation and most accurately determine the potential out-of-pocket costs of care you or a loved one may need.

Are the amounts listed on what I will have to pay for a service? 

The amounts we have listed on our website are base, undiscounted prices. They do not necessarily reflect a patient’s actual financial responsibility, which can vary significantly based on the care and services an individual requires if he or she is insured, and by which insurer or plan he or she is covered.

The amount collected by our hospital is almost always less than the amount provided on our website. Government programs, such as Medicare, pay hospitals much less than the amount listed. Similarly, commercial insurers typically negotiate discounts with hospitals like ours on behalf of the patients they cover.

Why can’t you provide actual charges or out-of-pocket costs for patients?

A person’s financial responsibility — or out-of-pocket costs — is dependent on many factors, including if he or she is insured, by which insurer and under which plan he or she is covered, and if he or she qualifies for financial assistance.  Because this varies so much from individual to individual, we cannot make blanket statements about actual charges or out-of-pocket costs.

Also, any charges that a patient incurs are dependent on a variety of factors such as how long he or she has to stay in the hospital, unexpected complications that arise, specific supplies and items needed for his or her care, and additional testing required or recommended to assess his or her condition. One patient’s needs may be vastly different from another’s even though they come to the hospital for the same procedure. It is difficult to estimate how this can differ.

We do encourage all patients to contact their insurer or our business office to discuss their individual situations and determine the potential out-of-pocket costs of care they or a loved one may need.

How does a hospital set its prices?

Hospital prices are set to take into account the expected mix of patients seen and reflect expected payments from varied payers, such as insurance companies and the government. In addition, they are typically set to achieve an overall small positive margin, so a hospital can keep up with community needs, reinvest in the hospital’s services and facility, and provide care for those who can’t pay, and collaborate with and support organizations that share its mission.

What are you doing to help patients reduce or better manage their out-of-pocket costs? 

As you can imagine, we are subject to many legal and regulatory restrictions when it comes to patient costs, but we are offering what programs we have, payment options, and discounts that we can.

The business office can help individuals determine the potential costs of care they or a loved one may need and explore what programs, payment options, and discounts may be available.