Law Commons^™

Health Care And The Balance Billing Problem: The Solution Is The Common Law Of Contracts And Strengthening The Free Market For Health Care., George A. Nation Iii

George A Nation III

A large and growing group of insured patients is being unfairly burdened by hospitals’ exorbitant chargemaster prices. The burden is brought to bear on these patients through a process known as balance billing. For a variety of reasons hospital networks are becoming narrower as hospital systems contract with fewer insurers, and as a result, more and more patients are receiving balance bills. The practice of balance billing puts upward pressure on health care prices in general. That is, this practice leads to higher prices across the board for the uninsured, the out-of-network insured and even the in-network insured. This article …

Hospital Chargemaster Insanity: Heeling The Healers, George A. Nation Iii

George A Nation III

Hospital list prices, contained in something called a chargemaster are insanely high, often running 10 times the amount that hospitals routinely accept as full payment from insurers. Moreover, the relative level of a particular hospital’s chargemaster prices bears no relationship to either the quality of the services the hospital provides or, to the cost of the services provided. The purpose of these fictitious list prices is to serve as a starting point or anchoring point, for negotiations with third-party payers regarding the amount that they will actually pay the hospital for it’s goods and services.

Ironically, there is widespread agreement, …

Demand Promissory Notes And Commercial Loans: Balancing Freedom Of Contract & Good Faith, George A. Nation Iii

George A Nation III

Promissory notes are ubiquitous in commercial lending. The promissory note represents the borrowers promise to repay and is governed by the Uniform Commercial Code’s Article 3. Under Article 3, promissory notes are either demand instruments or time instruments. In general, the holder of a demand instrument may decide to demand payment at any time and for any reason, while the holder of a time note must wait for payment until the arrival of the specific repayment date or dates included in the note. For this reason, time notes usually contain an acceleration clause. An acceleration clause allows the holder to …

Determining The Fair And Reasonable Value Of Medical Services: The Affordable Care Act, Government Insurers, Private Insurers And Uninsured Patients, George A. Nation Iii

George A Nation III

Hospitals' chargemaster prices are grossly inflated; no one should be required to pay them. Thia article offers a formula to determine the fair and reasonable value of medical services.

We The People: The Consent Of The Governed In The 21st Century: The People’S Unalienable Right To Make Law., George A. Nation Iii

George A Nation III

My article argues in favor of federal direct democracy. Congress should recognize and facilitate the People’s right to make law via the tools of direct democracy (the initiative and referendum) at the federal level. Arguably, the national People already have this right though they have never used it. What is needed is the establishment of a clear process for the People to follow when exercising this right.

In the United States today the consent of the governed, on which the strength of our democracy depends, is weaker and more diluted than it needs to be or than it should be. …