<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0eYw3I_0w2bqKnp00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0eYw3I_0w2bqKnp00" width="980" height="653" ><figcaption>David Damuth</figcaption></figure>If there’s one thing that has been stressing out Coloradans a lot recently, it might just be the rising costs of living here.One thing that has gotten out of hand is our monthly household bills. Compared to the rest of the United States, Colorado has the <a href="https://943thex.com/coloradans-pay-some-of-the-highest-monthly-bills-in-the-country/">9th highest monthly bills</a>. On average, people are having to pay $2,553 per month. That means the average Coloradan has to pay an average of $30,637 a year on household bills alone.With that being said, sometimes it feels like fees in general can sneak up on you. <a href="https://943thex.com/ixp/50/p/colorado-hidden-fee-bill/">Colorado tried to introduce a bill</a> recently that would require certain hidden fees, like in hotel rooms and concert tickets, visible for everyone to see. However, there’s been a controversial fee over the past few decades that has frustrated many Coloradans trying to get medical care. They’re called ‘facility fees’, and they've brought in a truly shocking amount of cash to Colorado hospitals.<h2>What is a Facility Fee? </h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=383WnR_0w2bqKnp00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=383WnR_0w2bqKnp00" width="1600" height="1067" ><figcaption>Canva</figcaption></figure>If you ever are in an outpatient clinic in Colorado, you’ve probably come across the facility fee at one point or another.<a href="https://cha.com/issues/facility-fees/">According to Colorado Hospital Association</a>, these are added fees that are meant to cover the pay of the care teams that help doctors.In fact, there’s a completely different fee that’s associated with the doctors themselves, which is the provider fee.The Colorado Hospital Association claims that in many cases, these fees are solel responsible for helping pay the wages of the staff in Colorado.However, last year, the <a href="https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb23-1215">Colorado General Assembly</a> moved to make them more visible for patients as well. Originally, however, the plan was to limit hospitals on when they were allowed to give out facility fees.They’re also controversial because they haven’t been around that long. <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/2024/10/03/colorado-facility-fees-hospitals-billions/">According to the Denver Post</a>, they only really started in the 2000s when larger health care providers started buying smaller clinics. With that being said, just how much money have Colorado hospitals made off facility fees?Colorado Hospitals Have Made $13 Billion Over the Last Six Years From Facility Fees<a href="https://hcpf.colorado.gov/sites/hcpf/files/Final%20Hospital%20Facility%20Fee%20Report%20-%20R.pdf">In a recent report</a>, it was found that over the past six years, Colorado hospitals have made a staggering $13 billion off facility fees alone.It has also been found that for many people who have commercial insurance or Medicaid, these fees double the amount of their hospital bills.While the report certainly has found a direct correlation with the increase in costs for outpatient care, there’s no clear sign that this is necessarily limiting access to care for people. <h2>Newsweek's Top 10 Hospitals in Colorado for 2024</h2>Each year, Newsweek creates a list of the best hospitals in both the United States and the world. However, they also crunch the numbers and look at the best in-state hospitals around the country.Take a look <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/rankings/americas-best-state-hospitals-2024/americas-best-state-hospitals-2024-colorado">at their rankings</a> of Colorado's best hospitals.<h2>16 Colorado Hospitals Earn ‘A’ Grades for Patient Safety</h2>Colorado is home to more than 300 hospitals around the state. Which ones do the best job keeping you safe during your stay? HospitalSafetyGrade.org rates hospitals according to problems with surgery, safety, practices to prevent errors, and an evaluation of Doctors, nurses, and staff. Below are the 16 hospitals in Colorado that received an "A" rating.</div></body>

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Colorado Hospitals Have Made Billions Over Controversial Fee

If there’s one thing that has been stressing out Coloradans a lot recently, it might just be the rising costs of living here. One thing that has gotten out of hand is our monthly household bills. Compared to the rest of the United States, Colorado has the 9th highest...