Medical University of South Carolina

Christy Leek

Course Project

Medical University of South Carolina

        The home of Hollings Cancer center, cancer treatment for adults and children. MUSC is leading the state in telehealth or basically telemedicine for those patients that live in the upstate to get basic facility I and should be open in 2017. The facility will be called the Shawn Jenkins children’s hospital. It is also the only facility in the state that has services for heart, lung, liver and kidney/pancreas transplant services for adults and children. As well it also is the medical treatment without having to drive hours to physically see an chose is the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). I chose this because I work there and can answer the questions posted better about a facility that I am familiar with than a facility I have no idea about. MUSC is the only hospital and university combined in South Carolina, it is also the largest facility in South Carolina. It is also home to teaching the following medical professionals: college of medicine, college of nursing, college of dental medicine, college of health professionals, college of graduate studies, and college of pharmacy. It is also a research center and institute and offers a wide variety of clinical trials. MUSC is also expanding to have a separate facility for children’s services MUSC physician.

Legislative/Political Changes that effect MUSC are very few from what I have seen. This facility is the largest in the state of South Carolina. In South Carolina Obamacare customers face tough choices, they’re facing higher prices, fewer options and narrow networks. Consumers’ Choice announced in October it will not sell 2016 plans. Several other similar health insurance co-ops across the country also recently closed as they faced a sharp cut in federal reimbursement. Four companies will continue selling policies to South Carolina customers, but only BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina and its subsidiary, Blue Choice Health Plan, offer plans in every county. Some of them are also struggling to find a plan that covers services at Medical University Hospital. The Medical University of South Carolina and its 1,500 physicians aren’t considered “in-network” for BlueCross BlueShield or Blue Choice plans sold on HealthCare.gov. Aetna-Coventry, which previously prioritized Roper St. Francis providers in its network, now offers a handful of plans that include MUSC as a preferred provider. BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina and Blue Choice patients who purchase policies on the Affordable Care Act exchange may use MUSC doctors, but they should expect to pay much higher out-of-network prices. MUSC spokeswoman Heather Woolwine said the hospital wants to work with BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina so that they may be included in the “Blue” network.

So far, they haven’t reached an agreement. Patti Embry-Tautenhan, a spokeswoman for BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, pointed out that its Affordable Care Act plans include access to three other hospital systems in the Charleston area: Trident Health, Roper St. Francis and East Cooper Medical Center. “There are currently no plans to include MUSC in the 2016 individual ACA (Affordable Care Act) product network at this time,” she said. These restrictions do not affect BlueCross BlueShield customers insured through their employer or who qualify for the low-income Medicaid program or Medicare.