Marin Independent Journal - News - Marin: "Congress questions Sutter policies
Richard Halstead
Jong Sup Kim's three-hour visit to Marin General Hospital's trauma center after being hit by a car on June 1, 2004, cost him $20,339 - even though the Novato resident suffered no serious injuries.
Because he had been laid off from his job shortly before the accident, Kim had no health insurance. The annual income of his household, which includes his wife and teenage son, was about $25,200, considerably less than 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guideline.
That is significant because Marin General has a policy to completely write off the bills of uninsured patients earning less than 200 percent of the poverty guideline. But no such offer has been made to Kim. The hospital initially attempted to collect its entire portion of the bill: $18,354. It put Kim on a $50-a-month payment plan.
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