Report: AI Hospital Billing Added $942M in Costs
The insurer group said hospitals used AI-powered coding to bill for more complex care, adding $942 million in costs over two years.
- On Thursday, a Blue Cross Blue Shield Association study reported that hospital AI tools drove healthcare spending up by nearly $1 billion over two years. The group said the findings "raises concerns" that AI contributes to higher costs.
- Hospitals increasingly use AI to document secondary conditions, leading to claims for more complex illnesses in 2024 and 2025. The association noted no evidence exists that patients received different treatment despite higher billing codes.
- For major bowel surgeries, secondary conditions increased 55% and 33% respectively, the survey found. By describing patients as having more complex conditions, hospitals were paid an average of nearly $12,000 more per case.
- CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz stated at an industry summit Wednesday that AI is inflationary because it will "turbocharge the ability of the current billing systems to work more effectively." He warned the technology could worsen costs before improving them.
- Benefit consultants warn that unchecked AI usage could drive costs up by 11% next year unless employers reduce benefits. The report reflects a broader industry conflict, with insurers and hospitals blaming each other for spiraling expenses.
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Hospitals Used AI to Inflate Medical Bills by Nearly $1,000,000,000: Report
Hospitals’ use of artificial intelligence tools hiked healthcare spending by nearly $1 billion over a two-year period, per a Blue Cross Blue Shield Association analysis released Thursday. BCBSA’s new study […]
Blue Cross Blue Shield: AI-Assisted Medical Coding Added $1 Billion in Hospital Costs
Hospitals' growing use of AI to assign medical billing codes contributed close to $1 billion in extra costs for Blue Cross Blue Shield health plans between 2023 and 2025, according to a new analysis from the insurer's trade association. 70 percent of the additional cost involved additional diagnoses that did not change patients' actual care, according to the insurer, which describes the situation as a "clear disconnect between coding and treatme…
Health insurer points finger at AI as nearly $1 billion in questionable hospital charges appear
As AI codes billing inside hospitals, insurers say costs are added to a bloated health care system. Blue Cross Blue Shield put the tab as high as $1 billion.
Hospital AI Tools Added Nearly $1 Billion In Extra Billing, Blue Cross Analysis Finds
CHICAGO (VINnews) — Hospitals using artificial intelligence to scan medical records and flag extra diagnoses generated an estimated $942 million in additional costs for Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans between 2023 and 2025, according to a new analysis from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, even as treatment levels showed little change. The association […]
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