Health and Disability

A study published Monday found that 50 hospitals in the U.S. are charging uninsured patients more than 10 times the actual cost of care. Of those 50 hospitals, all but one is owned by for-profit entitites while 20 of the facilities are located in Florida, according to the study published in Health Affairs. Community Health Systems operates 25 of the hospitals on the list while Hospital Corp. of America operates 14 facilities. The most expensive hospital is North Okaloose Medical Center in the Florida Pandhandle, where uninsured consumers are charged 12.6 times the actual cost of patient care. In comparison, a typical U.S. hospital charges 3.4 times the cost of patient care, researchers said.