Bigger Bills Loom in Medevac Dispute
Tuesday, August 07 2012
A complex legal battle has been brewing between a popular medevac insurance provider and the state’s largest medevac company for the past year. While Guardian Flight won’t talk about the case, the insurer, Apollo MT, says it can’t afford to keep quiet.
Apollo MT took an unusual step this summer to tell its customers just how much money this private dispute could cost them. In June, some 2,400 Unalaska residents with Apollo MT insurance got a letter in their mailboxes. The letter was from the insurer, and it asked customers to, “please request all other carriers prior to Guardian Flight being utilized."
Guardian Flight is one of three medevac providers serving Unalaska, but it's the only one with a dedicated base on the island. Guardian has always been the preferred provider for Apollo insurance customers. But starting next summer, that could change.
Eric Stirling is Apollo MT’s medical director. He says Guardian Flight offers excellent care, but it’s become too expensive over time.
“Their rates are substantially above Medicare or Medicaid, which is understandable," he says. "They are above other providers, as well.”
Stirling says Apollo MT doesn’t want to increase the cost of its insurance policies on account of Guardian, so it’s going to pay Guardian less for their medevacs — which means customers may be forced to pay more.
Right now, Apollo MT’s customers pay nothing out of pocket. But according to the letter they sent out, starting in May 2013, Apollo’s reimbursement rates for Guardian Flight would drop to 80% of what Medicare usually pays for services. That would leave a customer with at least $3,000 in bills for a simple Guardian Flight to Anchorage — and the costs only go up from there.
Guardian Flight isn’t happy that Apollo MT sent out this letter while the companies are supposed to be hammering out a new contract. Stirling, from the insurer, says he understands why Guardian might be upset about the letter. But he thinks it was necessary to tell customers how their benefits could change next year.
“Obviously that’s caused a fair amount of reaction at Guardian Flight," Stirling says. "We say we can’t not tell our beneficiaries or our members that. To us, that wouldn’t be open or transparent.”
Shanon Pollock is a vice president at the company that owns Guardian Flight. Pollock declined to be interviewed, but he did issue a brief statement about the ongoing dispute with Apollo MT.
He said, “This situation should not concern any potential patient as it is simple negotiation and negotiation tactics between two organizations.”
But the negotiations aren’t so simple. On July 17, Guardian Flight sued Apollo MT for defamation in response to the letter. That’s just the latest in a string of legal dustups between these two companies. Guardian Flight first sued Apollo MT about a year ago for breach of contract, and Apollo MT countersued, alleging that the medevac company wasn’t honoring the contract either.
Stirling says the current contract negotiations are separate from the court case. But it’s clear that the lawsuits have cast a pall on their business with each other.
“There is no negotiation right now," Stirling says.
If the companies can’t get back to the table, Apollo MT will start using the reimbursement plan laid out in its letter. And in August 2013, Guardian and Apollo’s lawsuit will go to trial. No matter what, Guardian Flight will still provide medevacs to Apollo MT customers if they need them — but it will be up to patients to negotiate the new out-of-pocket bills with the medevac company.
gloria on Friday, August 02 2013:
Medical transport from cordova to anchorage should not cost 50,000 dollars in 2013, and only two years ago it was 15,000
Rusty on Thursday, August 09 2012:
I'm an electrician. I know what a Guardian bill for medevac from Dutch Harbor is because I have one of my very own. If Guardian hadn't been on the island when I needed them I'd have a prosthetic hand today. My insurance paid most of the bill, I'm on a payment plan for the rest and I'll pay every penny of it. I don't have a cute metaphor about sausages and chocolate rice treats, I'm just plainly stating that four hours makes a difference. I wouldn't presume to speak for this community, but I have come to terms with the fact that it's expensive to conduct business here, and I have directly benefitted from Guardian's presence here, so I'm maybe more ok than you that the company charges enough for its services so that keeping such a resource on the ground here is viable. Wait your four hours for your hotdog or your rice treats sans chocolate. You'll probably be just fine. I'll use Guardian.
Lucas Scott on Thursday, August 09 2012:
Rusty which compan
Scott Ruben on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
Carlos and Rusty let me make sure I understand what you are saying. You like hot dogs, not so much Polish Sausages. Hot dogs are good. Guardian is the Polish Sausage of Alaska (relating to medical air transports). Sure Polish Sausages can be good, but their so big and really it's hard to shed the pounds when you eat one. You also like Rice Crispy treats, but not just normal ones, you know the ones with chocolate on top. Now those are the good ones. Guardian is like a chocolate covered Rice Crispy treat. So if you take Rice Crispy treats and poor chocolate on them, sure it’ll taste good, but it’ll take you a while to work it off, kind of like Guardian’s bill. That’s pretty much what you’re talking about, right?
Luis on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
Carlos.... So sorry to slight you.... I mistakenly put my fake name instead of yours with Rusty's... My bad Amigo....
Luis on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
Rusty and Luis sound like they came right out of the guardian air company meeting to share these "facts" with us. Try to search or these precious tidbits they shared with us and none of it is public information. Trust me, I tried....One would need to internally know these one-sided "facts"...
It's easy for is all to hide behind the truth when we can anonymously post. Mr. Sterling seemed to be open to a public sharing of his version of the story. It looks like the fine folks at guardian are more comfortable with smoke and mirrors and anonymous regurgitation of their righteous "truth". So sad for all the people who count on them...
Rusty on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
Thank you, Carlos. This dispute was sparked by Apollo MT's apparent inability to pay their obligations. Their decision to negotiate with a vendor by scaring their customer base en-masse is at best desperation; maybe worse, it indicates a lack of character. Out of curiosity I called some medevac companies in the lower 48 to see how Guardian Flight rates compare. They're average. Other carriers in AK hold rates artificially low for the reasons Carlos mentions. Don't pick up the torches and pitchforks until the whole story is known.
Joseph Smith on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
You know Guardian is the only company that has actually station a plane here aside from Life Flight for a few months back in 2007. They still rent a triplex here and a have vehicle here. What that means to us is a four hour quicker response because at least part of the year their plane is on the ground which translates into lives saved. It really is to bad that they are charging so much for a flight.
Concerned Citizen on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
It is sad when all we have here in Unalaska is an airline company that charges unforgivable fees, provides limited seats for residence, and has poor customer services skills; when our medical clinic is extremely limited in medical resources in providing critical care to members of our community, and an air ambulance service that has a better arrival/departure record than the airline company, but even worse in charging fees to be transported to Anchorage.
God forbid, people suffer through a medical event, no medical air bus is available, and they have to wait for the weather to clear only to find out there are no seat on the local airplane either coming or going into/out of Unalaska. Someone please look at what is going on and make some decisions that will invoke change!! Who is speaking up for us citizens around here?
Anonymous on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
One of my good friends became a commercial pilot in 2002, and his first job was flying for an air ambulance company in the lower 48. He got paid $15,000 PER YEAR for flying FULL-TIME. $25,000 for a medevac flight is fair; however, Guardian charges us $100,000 PER FLIGHT. Guardian is fleecing customers in Unalaska because we they know don't have any other choices. I will never take a Guardian flight and I guess I'll just pray that I never have a medical emergency.
Carlos on Wednesday, August 08 2012:
It is interesting to me that a for profit company is being castsed for "charging too much" by the man who uses to own the company and was days away from going completely under when the new owners bought it, and their rates are being compared to two other companies that at both subsidized and non profit, connected to hospitals. It is actually of some benefit for non profit companies to loose money particularly when the hospital they are connected with gets money from admitting the patient.
Politics are an unavoidable reality in this business but it's unfortunate when people in crisis are forced to sort through all this manipulative retoric.