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Health Services Fee Hike Proposed

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By JULIA FERRANTE

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 10, 2008

The cost of providing health services is going up, and the Pasco County Health Department plans to raise fees to compensate.

The county commission Tuesday is slated to review a new schedule of fees, which include increases for most office visits and some services.
Health department officials are proposing the increases as part of a semiannual review of costs and funding, spokeswoman Deanna Krautner said. Some services are being added and others replaced with different procedures eligible for local, state or federal funding.

"We have minimal increases in a lot of different areas," Krautner said. "By increasing the fees, it helps us cover the services we provide."

Many patients are eligible for discounts on a sliding scale based on salary, Krautner said. Others are covered or partially covered by Medicare and Medicaid.

The fees for new patient office visits would increase from between $40 and $90 to between $50 and $80 while the charge for established patients would go from between $25 and $60 to between $30 and $60.

Costs for family planning services, such as birth control and counseling, and nutrition counseling for diabetes or weight control also would increase.

Many other charges would stay the same.

The health department is adding some services such as CPR classes, which were not previously offered, Krautner said.

The Pasco health department, a division of the Florida Department of Health, has seen a steady increase in the number of patients served during the past several years.

In the 2005-06 fiscal year, the department saw 60,612 clients. The number increased to 68,747 the next fiscal year and is expected to reach 76,730 in fiscal year 2007-08.

Reporter Julia Ferrante can be reached at (813) 948-4220 or jferrante@tampatrib.com.

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