Is there any way to get help for medical bills?

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Forum -> Household Management -> Finances

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amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:08 am

Or therapy bills? I have both and they are really piling up and choking us. I had to get a procedure that was over 7,000$ after my deductible! We technically should be ok when you look at our salary/expenses but I keep having medical bills.. we aren’t like in dire straights yet but I feel stressed. Then there’s the very very expensive therapy that just isn’t a choice right now. Any leads would be appreciated.

evi

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:19 am

For medical, call and ask for a prompt payment discount, or financial assistance application. I just got a 20% discount from a hospital like that.

Deducting from your taxes or opening an HSA might help.

Switching providers for the therapy?

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:24 am

evi wrote:

Thanks. I will try that
I wish we could switch to cheaper providers for for right now it’s just simply not an option for specific reasons

amother

Powderblue

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:34 am

Why do you have such high out of pocket costs after you meet your deductible? Do you have coinsurance costs? Are you using in network providers?

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:35 am

amother Powderblue wrote:

Why do you have such high out of pocket costs after you meet your deductible? Do you have coinsurance costs? Are you using in network providers?

Yes coinsurance. Yes using in network providers. I don’t have premiums but very high out of pocket..

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 10:37 am

Eveything g adds up. An ultrasound is like 200+ copays for specialists are 70$. Surgery is 35% coinsurence after u reach deductible. Hence the high bills

evi

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 11:29 am

Switch plans? Have you shopped Obamacare marketplace yet?

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 11:30 am

evi wrote:

Switch plans? Have you shopped Obamacare marketplace yet?

This is the only plan available through my husbands work..

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 11:52 am

Depending where you live, in some places there is something called medically needy Medicaid. It's for people who earn too much for regular Medicaid. If you're enrolled, and you use a Medicaid provider, Medicaid will cover medical bills that insurance won't cover once you've paid a certain amount out of pocket each month.

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 11:56 am

amother Scarlet wrote:

Thank you. In ny you need to be over 65 or disabled. I am neither..

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:05 pm

amother OP wrote:

Thank you. In ny you need to be over 65 or disabled. I am neither..

Are you sure? According to this there are many other people who qualify https://www.health.ny.gov/heal.....ition

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:11 pm

Sorry you are right u can also be a parent.. I will look into it although j have a feeling we won’t qualify.. the income limits will likely stilll not work.. also not sure how it works when u technically have insurence through ur job..

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:14 pm

amother OP wrote:

Ok just trying to help. This is exactly what it's for.. people who have insurance but still pay a lot out of pocket.

amother

Tanzanite

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:17 pm

They advertised lately that they help fight insurance claims.
845-605-2993

amother

Honeysuckle

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:38 pm

I highly recommend reading 'Never Pay the First Bill' to help you learn how to deal with medical bills and insurance companies and billing offices.

amother

Powderblue

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 12:42 pm

I've never had any luck getting any sort of assistance for bills that were legally mine to pay (copays, deductible, co insurance). And I spoke with the financial departments of the medical practices/ hospitals and offered to provide tax returns as proof of need. I also tried to get whatever I could from Medicaid (when I was eligible for it). I think the way they look at is is that you signed up for this plan and you knew there would be high out of pocket costs, so it's not their problem.

The only time I ever had a bill waived was because of errors.

amother

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 1:38 pm

amother Powderblue wrote:

Great. It’s really hard. I almost didn’t do the surgery bec of the cost although my doctors said I didn’t really have a choice. Now I’m wondering how we are supposed to pay all this. I need to work on my bitachon.

amother

Springgreen

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 2:22 pm

Check what was being billed. I have had major errors where they tried billing for things that didnt happen. Like they used a high level procedure code on my kid at urgent care. I called up my health insurance to ask about it and they asked what was done. Apparently the urgent care overbilled and my fee went down.

amother

Powderblue

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 3:07 pm

amother OP wrote:

Hey I get you. I once paid over $5000 for a miscarriage that had a lot of medical complications. It was awful. But there wasn't anything to do....I think there was only one anesthesiologist bill that they agreed to reduce a bit after we sent them tax returns. But otherwise they were totally unforgiving. I had to pay everything upfront even before the procedures. I literally remember my husband giving them an envelope with like $2000 cash (can't remember why we paid cash and not CC but there must have been a reason)

amother

Mimosa

Wed, Aug 17 2022, 4:55 pm

You are unfortunately a victim of a health plan that is inexpensive so that there are high co-payments and a high deductible.

However there is a cap on annual out of pocket expenses which are high for a family but are theoretically not enough to cause bankruptcy which prior to the AHCA was a leading cause of bankruptcy - I.e. high medical bills for uninsured people.

To the extent possible you can try to schedule expensive procedures in one year so that you reach your deductibles as opposed to spreading them out in two years.

This also helps in terms of tax deductions for medical expenses because you can deduct when they are more than 10% of income - not sure if it is Adjusted Gross but it can help with high medical expenses and for that purpose all of your medical expenses are deductible like glasses, dental work and even OTC medical remedies. I think transportation for medical appointments is also deductible but check with your accountant.

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