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Question
Do I have to pay this hospital bill?
Back in 2007 I was hospitalized after getting food poisoning. I was only there for about 4 hours.(2 hours were spent waiting). My insurance company processed the bill and the majority was paid off. I paid the deductible which was about $2,000. I just received another bill this month that says I owe them about $320. They say that my insurance company barely paid the bill about 1 month ago and that this is my copay. So for almost 2 years I did not hear a peep from the hospital or the Insurance company that there was a payment that needed to be done. Every single hospital and clinic always sends delinquent bills to a collection agency if the bill has not been paid within 3 months. So my question is, if there is any way of me getting out of paying this bill? I do remember paying my bill off completely and having a balance of $0 with that hospital. I think I can find the receipt but it is unlikely because it was 2 YEARS AGO. I was told a long time ago that if a healthcare provider does not bill me within one year of having any procedure done then I am not accountable for that bill. So what do you guys think?
5 months ago - 2 answers
Best Answer
Chosen by Asker
the most important thing to do is to not ignore the bill and get sent to collection. First contact the hospital billing dept and (very politely, you don't want to get them mad at you) ask for a detailed explanation of your bill. Simply explain that you thought the bill was already taken care of and that you're confused by this long delay. They should be able to send you a full explanation of all charges and payments. Then contact your insurance company and do the same thing, and have them send you an "explanation of benefits." This will be a line-by-line description of exactly what was billed, payed and owed. If there's a mistake, you should be able to find it in these documents. If it turns out they're right, then call back the hospital billing people, the ones you had been really, really nice to the first time you called, and ask what type of solution can be reached. Most of the time if you're making some type of payment each month, even if it's a small payment, they won't send you to collection. Just don't skip a payment or they will send you and your credit rating will be trashed. It's really hard to recover your credit rating after a medical bill collection process. good luck!
by Supermom
5 months ago
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Other Answers
Just pay your bill. Whoever told you that a healthcare provider has one year to bill you is full of beans. I dare that person to put it in writing. What probably happened is that the insurance company was slow to process the claim. Though you might have paid your deductible, it is doubtful that even after the deductible, the insurance would pay 100%. Insurance plans can pay as little as 50%-70 or 80% after deductible thus leaving you with the copay. BTW, insurance plans usually write off part of the hospital bill (as "not allowed") so be glad that you just owe $320. If you don't like deductibles and copays, find a plan with smaller deductibles/copays. But don't moan if the insurance premiums cost more.
by MickeyMouse- 5 months ago