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Most absurd medical bill you have ever received?
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cbsp




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 8:17 am
amother [ Salmon ] wrote:
Most upsetting to me was a huge bill from the anesthesiologist after one of my births. Turns out he was out of network, so I had to pay my out of network deductible in addition to the in network deductible for my ob. And no one thought to tell me at the time that I was using an out of network doctor. Apparently they don't have to tell you, so never assume! My deductibles at the time were very high. Ugh.


We had this with the birth of my oldest and fought and fought and fought it.

I now announce before any treatment that I have no intention of paying any out of network providers so anyone who treats me must be within network or willing to work for free.
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amother
Wheat


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 8:28 am
$2500 for my baby's birth (still fighting it 2 years later) because they charged the baby's insurance but gave my name (and I had different insurance).
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baby12x




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 8:51 am
A $400 charge for a hearing test for my baby.
The hospital was in-network, then nurse who administered the exam was in-network but apparently the lab that processes the exam was "out-of-network" so not covered by insurance.
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ddmom




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 8:59 am
cbsp wrote:
We had this with the birth of my oldest and fought and fought and fought it.

I now announce before any treatment that I have no intention of paying any out of network providers so anyone who treats me must be within network or willing to work for free.

Does that work? To announce that you have no intention of paying it? LOL
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amother
Sapphire


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:01 am
amother [ Natural ] wrote:
Why is this not front and center with regard to why insurance premiums are so high? Why don't we start right here with these absurd rates doctors and hospitals bill insurance companies? Even if the ultimate payment is less, why is it fair that the starting point for putting a split on my sons pinkie is $400?


I'm inclined to agree with you as that does seem to artificially inflate insurance premiums.

When my finger incident happened, it was explained to me that since ERs can't turn away people they treat and then find out that many of them don't have insurance, don't have jobs/illegals etc. So they end up haggling down and many of those bills don't end up ever getting paid, so they have to inflate the costs for those like me who could've paid the bill. Not sure what those people do about the doctor bills that we couldn't haggle down, but I don't know.

I also think that insurances need to be able to cross state lines. Especially in cities that are so close to borders. Where I live, the "biggest" city in my state with the top hospitals is 3-4 hours away. There's a much bigger city, with even better hospitals 2-3 hours away, but its a different state. I'm about 10 miles from a different state, 4 hours from their big city. If my insurance would cross state lines I think there would be more competition for specialists. Insurance in my state stinks and I can't even go to specialists in a MAJOR US city.
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cbsp




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:10 am
ddmom wrote:
Does that work? To announce that you have no intention of paying it? LOL


Well, hospitals are big on getting signed consent for everything. I did successfully fight the anesthesiologist bill on those grounds - nothing I signed indicated that in an in network hospital their doctors on call weren't in network - it's not like I chose who would treat me.

I don't know if it would work in another situation but I do say it anyway. In case we need to fight there's something on record. (I also inquire politely at registration and every step of the way, I'm not belligerent about it.)
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amother
Pumpkin


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:21 am
A $7000 IUD removal that they swore was in network and covered by insurance
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Chayalle




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:24 am
Took my DD to a dermatologist to remove a type of beauty mark. We had already had it biopsied elsewhere and told this to the doctor. Without informing me, he had it biopsied again and sent to a lab, and I got stuck with a $300 bill because my insurance wouldn't pay for it twice.
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amother
Forestgreen


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:33 am
amother [ Pumpkin ] wrote:
A $7000 IUD removal that they swore was in network and covered by insurance


Wow. I don't live in the USA but where I live birth control is not covered by either the government medical service or my private insurance cover. I paid out of pocket for my IUD insertion and removal. (twice) Its been a while since I had mine removed so I don't remember how much I paid but I just googled and a local clinic is charging $65 for removal. (this is a western country. Other costs of living are comparable or higher then the USA)
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amother
Lime


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:35 am
For those who got bills because of out-of-network providers:

https://www.dfs.ny.gov/consume.....bills
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amother
Pumpkin


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:37 am
amother [ Forestgreen ] wrote:
Wow. I don't live in the USA but where I live birth control is not covered by either the government medical service or my private insurance cover. I paid out of pocket for my IUD insertion and removal. (twice) Its been a while since I had mine removed so I don't remember how much I paid but I just googled and a local clinic is charging $65 for removal. (this is a western country. Other costs of living are comparable or higher then the USA)


I got my IUD inserted in Israel, where insurance didnt cover it all. I cant remember how much I paid, but it wasnt crazy.
I got it removed in the US. We ended up fighting the $7000 bill and not having to pay. But it definitely is an absurd amount!
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amother
Jade


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 9:40 am
I needed a very rare surgery that my insurance didn't cover so I had an organization that said they will pay all my bills. My surgeon knew someone paid the bills for me cuz he wrote them a letter about my situation. So he sent me an unofficial bill from him privately. I called the hospital to ask something and they couldn't see I received a bill or that I was ever admitted in the hospitel. The dr tried to earn some more money on my cheshbon. It didn't change much for me I just found it creepy...
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itsmeima




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 10:16 am
amother [ Brunette ] wrote:
A doctor gave me orange juice because he said my blood pressure was too low (I have low blood pressure). I did not want to argue with him so I drank it. My insurance was billed over $500 for it!


How in heavens name is this legal? Why is the Health Insurance okay with that..?


Last edited by itsmeima on Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:00 am; edited 1 time in total
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notshanarishona




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 10:24 am
Or being charged $100 for a urine pregnancy test which is probably from China for .10 at every er visit. Especially when they do it to 12 year old frum girls who know very well they aren't pregnant

Last edited by notshanarishona on Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:25 am; edited 1 time in total
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ra_mom




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 10:26 am
The podiatrist charged $975 for surgery when he randomly clipped one of dh's toe nails (wasn't necessary) during a visit.
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amother
Ruby


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:04 am
A lab bill for over 4k. The Dr we used made an agreement with a local lab to do the blood work. Lab was OON at that time. Took almost 1 year to resolve. I didn't pay anything.

When I gave birth my baby had a minor breathing problem and they were trying to suction out the fluid. They called for a Dr. Another Dr was right outside and ran in. He told us everything is ok, nothing to worry about. He did inform us that if the other Dr walks in we should send him away, otherwise it will be a $500 charge.
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suzyq




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:21 am
amother [ Salmon ] wrote:
Most upsetting to me was a huge bill from the anesthesiologist after one of my births. Turns out he was out of network, so I had to pay my out of network deductible in addition to the in network deductible for my ob. And no one thought to tell me at the time that I was using an out of network doctor. Apparently they don't have to tell you, so never assume! My deductibles at the time were very high. Ugh.


I had major surgery - in-network hospital with an in-network surgeon and had the same thing - anesthesiologist was out of network. Apparently it's very common and very few anesthesiologists are in-network anywhere for various reasons. And the anesthesiologist bill was MORE than my surgeon's! Luckily, I fought it and my insurance ended up covering it fully - a lot of the time they will if you call and fight about it. But it's really crazy how they don't have to disclose that the providers in your in-network hospital are actually out of network.
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notshanarishona




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:27 am
suzyq wrote:
I had major surgery - in-network hospital with an in-network surgeon and had the same thing - anesthesiologist was out of network. Apparently it's very common and very few anesthesiologists are in-network anywhere for various reasons. And the anesthesiologist bill was MORE than my surgeon's! Luckily, I fought it and my insurance ended up covering it fully - a lot of the time they will if you call and fight about it. But it's really crazy how they don't have to disclose that the providers in your in-network hospital are actually out of network.


The problem is that every insurance is different so hospitals can't take responsibility to keep track of who is in network. I think there should be legislation that insurance has to pay for everything at an in network hospital.
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amother
Ivory


 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:38 am
A while ago received a bill that we had to pay $3,000 out of pocket for ear surgery - my husband went to an ENT and had his ears cleaned out. We called the Dr. and had them recode it. Can't Believe It
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Gerbera




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 16 2019, 11:38 am
I'm just in shock. I've never seen a medical bill in my life and can't understand how ppl can afford these bills or even afford to have a baby. How are some of these costs even justified?? This seems like a huge stress to have en route to a hospital. Just wow.
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