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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/37/1qb8JJ.St.138.jpg|414Rachael Shehan, a Lenoir resident who has been unable to get financial assistance from Caldwell Memorial Hospital even though she has no job and no health insurance. She has been to the hospital many times, and now estimates that she owes more than $15,000. With nephew Dallen, 5. Jeff Willhelm - jwillhelm@charlotteobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/37/Ql8WF.St.138.jpg|433Exterior of Caldwell Memorial Hospital. Rachael Shehan and her husband Randy, Caldwell County residents who - despite having no jobs and no health insurance - have been unable to get financial assistance from Caldwell Memorial Hospital. That hospital spends less than 2 percent of its budget on charity care, much less than it receives in tax exemptions each year. Ames Alexander - aalexander@charlotteobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/37/1iRE0o.St.138.jpg|414Rachael Shehan, a Lenoir resident who has been unable to get financial assistance from Caldwell Memorial Hospital even though she has no job and no health insurance. She has been to the hospital many times, and now estimates that she owes more than $15,000. Her husband Randy has had similar experiences. Jeff Willhelm - jwillhelm@charlotteobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/36/fOWMm.St.138.jpg|525Mary Jo Warren gets a hug from her friend Brenda Harman in the kitchen of her Clinton, N.C. home on February 28, 2012. Warren suffered a stroke in 2010. Unable to work, she lost her nursing home job and her health insurance. Warren relies on her faith, her church and a network of friends like Harman that help her. Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/36/GOjmz.St.138.jpg|405Mary Jo Warren talks with Mary Dudley in the kitchen of her Clinton, N.C. home on February 2, 2012. Warren suffered a stroke in 2010. Unable to work, she lost her nursing home job and her health insurance. Warren relies on her faith, her church and a network of friends like Dudley that help her. Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/36/y8Lvt.St.138.jpg|525Mary Jo Warren suffered a stroke in 2010 and has been harasses by bill collectors ever since. Unable to work, she lost her nursing home job and her health insurance. Warren relies on her faith, her church and a network of friends that help her. Warren was photographed in her Clinton, N.C. with a stack of medical bills. Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/35/XbOm6.St.138.jpg|387Mary Jo Warren sings during her Tuesday night bible study with members of her church in rural Sampson County on February 28, 2012. Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/35/FtKTn.St.138.jpg|441Mary Jo Warren socializes with members of her church in rural Sampson County on February 28, 2012. Following their bible study they gather around the kitchen table for a pot luck dinner. On this night Warren prepared a red velvet cake.
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/35/wTwV9.St.138.jpg|410Sheila Pyles photographed on March 1, 2012 in Roxboro, N.C. When her uninsured daughter 19-year-old daughter Johnnika Pyles was discharged from Person Memorial Hospital in 2009 and billed $5,468, Sheila Pyles called the hospital to see if her daughter would qualify for charity care. Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
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http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/04/18/09/35/o7zR6.St.138.jpg|525Jessica Curtis, director of Community Catalyst's Hospital Accountability Project, called the number of N.C. hospitals spending less than 2 percent of their budgets on charity care "shocking." "But it's shocking because it happens in almost every state," said Curtis, whose Boston-based group works to improve access to hospital care. "It's almost a blatant disregard for the needs of the poor." To be sure, charity care is just one of many ways that hospitals help their communities. They absorb millions in losses from treating Medicaid and Medicare patients because government reimbursement doesn't cover their costs. They lose millions more from treating uninsured patients who never pay their bills. They also train doctors and nurses, sponsor wellness programs and support community clinics.
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