4aSong
Northwest Arizona
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Joined: 10/15/2003
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I have a question regarding medical bills. Once the insurance has paid there portion there is usually a small to significant amount that we are responsible for. In the case of two knee replacements we have a significant amount of charges which we are responsible for after the insurance has paid there portion, how do you explain to each of the medical billing offices that there are also many others requesting payment so we will pay them what we can afford each month. I have tried to explain this to some and they seem to not care one way or the other, seems like a pack of wolfs pounding at the door to squeeze the last bit of juice out of you. Just want to vent but any advise would be most grateful.
Mike and Nancy 
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helperzack
Port St. Lucie, FL
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Joined: 08/23/2007
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I will tell you from past experience. Negotiate with them. If you have the means to pay a reduced/discounted amount, make them an offer. I cannot get insurance on my wife because of pre-existing conditions. IDDM. Only one company quoted us and it was $2900.00 per month with a two year ban on payments linked to her diabetes.
That's about like saying if it is linked to your body, we will not pay.
She is just home from a 5 day hospital stay resulting from extreme chest pain. They informed us that we would qualify for a cost sharing plan, except we own 3 vehicles(2 cars and the motor home.) That disqualifies us for any. Heck, while in the emergency room there was a gentleman who had come in for dialysis. Third time this week according to his conversation with the nurses. He was not of American decent, and spoke broken English. He worked as a landscaper, good work here in S.FL. I guess that he also had no insurance as the large dialysis center was just a block away from the hospital. Why was he walking into the hospital? No insurance. Will they go after him? NO, most likely he has little. So, we all pay.
The lady at the hospital who was telling us that we did not qualify, also mentioned that they may be willing to settle for one lump sum payment. I asked her was she thinking a few thousand or $20 thousand?????? She then said $5,000 but that would have to come from another department. An employee who works with me recently had a stay at this same hospital, he has medicare but left the hospital with a $3200 bill. He went and talked with them and they wrote the whole thing off.
One local hospital where my wife has her blood work done, offers a 50% discount off labs to us. I always wait until I receive their statement, then email them asking for their "very best discount" for prompt payment. If any medical provider will not offer a discount, then I will send $10-20 per month. Make an attempt to pay something every month. I am responsible for my bills and I pay them. My customers sometimes don't pay, I normally just eat it and go on. Any that want to make payments are welcome to. Some tell me on the front end that they can't pay the going rate, I always try to work something out for them.
We also explain our situation to her doctors, most all then offer us the medicare rate which is considerably lower than their list rates.
If you phone them, take down names, numbers and note date and time you spoke. Then follow that up with a letter reiterating what was discussed and what the outcome was. DO NOT pay an amount discussed over the phone without a letter from the billers. On one bill I received from a hospital stay for myself, the billing department would not return my calls or letters. I sent a letter directly to the doctor at the hospital address, then I got a response with a discounted charge.
Sorry to go on and on, but you can talk and ask for anything, keep good notes.
PM me if I can offer any other help.
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obgraham
WA
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Joined: 08/30/2005
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As a doc (thankfully, retired now!), let me explain part of this most folks don't understand.
The doctor's office is REQUIRED to collect the noncovered amount as a condition of their insurance agreement. These agreements are dictated to them by the insurance companies, and usually with no negotiation at all. If the doc makes no effort to collect the copays, etc., the insurance company will simply reduce the amount they cover in the future.
Now, how much effort they go to to collect the copay is open to negotiation. It often costs more to send the bill than is collected. So the vast majority of docs are open to the patient going in and negotiating, either the amount to be paid or the terms of payment. But when the patient makes no effort at all, and zero payment, that account will usually go to collection pretty quickly.
So my advice is to let at least one billing cycle go by, then speak to the office managers at all the places (not just the billing clerk) and propose a plan of payment. It's likely that they will accept a lower amount paid now, rather than the full amount paid a lot later.
Hospitals are a tougher nut to crack, but the same approach is often successful.
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chuck369
ms.
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Joined: 11/05/2007
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i was in the hospital and when i got the balance i owed i saw charges on there that they never done or i received they claimed that they gave me my regular medicine they never did i brought it from the house
and took it myself so the bill was reduced about %75 after i showed
them the difference ALLWAYS CHECK THE BILL AND ASK WHY FOR THIS
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2Bcomfy
Alton Il
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Joined: 02/15/2004
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wait until after the election because both candidates have promised to fix our failing healthcare system! tee hee! sorry, but I had to say it.
I have called individual office managers to set smaller payment amounts and that seems to keep bill out of collections.
best of luck
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wayne_tw
South Dakota/Georgia
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Joined: 07/21/2007
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Changed my mind about posting. My flame suit is not that thick.
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Bumpyroad
Virginia
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Joined: 12/01/2005
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lets see, you have legitimate bills and can't afford to pay them. I would just send each of them some of their money (like you apparently are doing) and explain you will send the rest as you can. unless you get to be a total deadbeat I doubt they will turn it over to a collection agency.
Vent if you like but you owe them so pay them.
bumpy
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Scottiemom
South Dakota/Indiana
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Joined: 09/09/2003
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helperzack:
Just as a point of information, ALL dialysis patients are covered under medicare. Doesn't matter how old. . . if you are 5 and have to go on dialysis, you are covered. My MIL went on dialysis and was on it until she died 4 1/2 years later. When she started, the cost was about $100,000 a year per patient. The cost of her supplies, which we always saw in her Medicare statements almost tripled in the time she was alive. The nephrologist bills Medicare directly and your supplement covers a small portion of what isn't covered. I don't know what happens if you don't have a supplement, but that amount on my MIL was inconsequential. The biggest problem for her were the drugs that went along with it as that was pre part D. Now Part D would cover those items.
Interestingly, if you have a kidney transplant to release you from the daily/weekly dialysis treatments, Medicare pays for your anti-rejection drugs for only a year. Makes no sense to me.
I don't know why the guy was going to the hospital in lieu of the dialysis center because it would have been paid for either way. Perhaps he was doing a new type of solution which required extra observation. But it was paid for by Medicare either way.
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helperzack
Port St. Lucie, FL
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Joined: 08/23/2007
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Dale,
Thanks for the info regarding Medicare. That is good to know about the coverage available.
The guy I wrote about may have been an illegal, so medicare I don't think would help him. Well, that is unless some politician has come up with that idea.
After a transplant, don't you have to have the anti-rejection drugs for the rest of your life??? Gee, that is down right stupid for medicare not to continue to cover them. Much like a $40 grab bar in the shower. Medicare will not cover something like that, but if you have medicare and fall in the shower, they will cover the $40k+++ hip replacement/rehab.
There just seems to be no common sense with so much now a days.
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Bumpyroad
Virginia
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Joined: 12/01/2005
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"Heck, while in the emergency room there was a gentleman who had come in for dialysis. Third time this week according to his conversation with the nurses. He was not of American decent, and spoke broken English. He worked as a landscaper, good work here in S.FL. I guess that he also had no insurance as the large dialysis center was just a block away from the hospital. Why was he walking into the hospital? No insurance. Will they go after him? NO, most likely he has little. So, we all pay."
yep, I am sure that a large amount of a hospitals expenses are for non-insured folks showing up at the emergency room.
bumpy
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