Medical bills are a very common cause of financial problems in the US. An unexpected medical emergency or chronic illness could cost you more than you can afford to pay. Your bills could be even more costly if you made mistakes before, during or after receiving medical care. Try to avoid the following mistakes to reduce your chances of being sent unaffordable medical bills. Using out-of-network services. You should stick to health care providers and services that are covered by your insurance policy. Out-of-network charges can be prohibitively expensive. We understand this is not always possible (such as during emergencies), but you could research your options beforehand in some cases. Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to call the clinic or hospital beforehand to verify they are in your network. Failing to request an itemized bill. You should request an itemized bill if it was much larger than…
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Medical bills continue to be a major financial problem for millions of Americans. More people than ever are covered by health insurance policies, but there are still reports of people receiving surprise medical bills in the thousands of dollars. We have discussed the concept of balance billing on this blog before. Balance billing is where you are charged the difference between what your insurance company will pay and what a health services provider chooses to charge. This may happen when you receive services from a doctor or specialist who is out-of-network. Many state lawmakers are developing legislation to protect patients from surprise medical bills in certain situations. State lawmakers in New Hampshire, Washington, New Jersey and Colorado are considering legislation that would further curb this practice. Oregon’s anti-balance billing law goes into effect this month. Other states with comprehensive balance billing protections include California, New York, Maryland, Illinois, Florida and…
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Medical debt is one of the most common reasons why people may suffer unexpected financial hardship. This is true even for people with insurance policies, who may have high deductible plans or bills from out-of-network services. However, there are certain steps you could take to cut health care costs. Find a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in your area. These are health centers that qualify for funding under the Public Health Service Act. FQHCs offer certain types of services on a sliding fee scale. This means that if you qualify for these sliding scale fees, you could receive discounted preventative, dental, mental health and specialty care services. To find an FHQC in your area, visit this website and type in your zip code. Call the center beforehand to ask which services they offer. If you have a health insurance policy, try to avoid out-of-network facilities, specialists or services. In non-emergency…
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*Credit card payments will not be accepted for bankruptcy cases, unless pre-approved by The Sader Law Firm. If you have a question about a credit card payment, please call our Office Manager at (816) 561 1818.
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