Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said a hearing is set for Friday, Jan. 27 in a legal case alleging Providence hospitals used "unfair and deceptive" medical billing practices for low-income patients. Providence denies the allegations, saying it holds all to the "highest standards and do not condone billing or collection practices that take advantage of the patients we serve, especially those who are vulnerable." Ferguson filed the suit in 2022, and plans to argue in an upcoming hearing that 36,000 patients that were eligible for charity care were wrongfully sent to debt collectors. "Washington state law is explicit that many Washingtonians qualify for something called charity care, in other words, reduced medical expenses," Ferguson said. "In this case, Providence simply, flagrantly ignored those laws and literally sent tens of thousands of Washingtonians that would have been sent to debt collectors to collect on debt they never should have owed." When Alexandra Nyfors of Everett faced a two-week hospital stay in a Providence-run facility due to an infection, kidney failure and associated issues, she said the medical care itself was excellent -- but the billing process that followed brought hardship. "The care I got was first-rate, particularly the nurses were just wonderful - and I got better, I'm not well but I'm better, well enough to be home and living my life," Nyfors said. "The billing practices are awful. They just didn't pay any attention to anything except 'Give us our money'." Nyfors says her initial hospital bill was more than $86,000, and after insurance was whittled down to around $2,000 -- an amount she still could not afford on a fixed income. She was able to secure an installment payment plan, but says she was never told she was eligible for free or reduced costs under the state's Charity Care Act. Instead, she found a way to pay each month -- she says, skimping on heating bills to afford the fees. READ THE FULL STORY: https://www.king5.com/article/news/health/wa-attorney-general-sues-providence-hospitals/281-2af76047-b48a-4fb4-b9e7-f031d6f68936