Medical bills can be a surprise and hard to understand. Maybe you went through with a procedure even though you thought you had asked all the right questions, only to get a surprise bill. Or, you or someone you care about needed emergency medical care, and now you have a big bill that you can't pay.
Many people don't know how important it is to check for mistakes on their medical bills. Even if everything is right, you might be able to negotiate a lower bill or a better way to pay. Here's what you need to know about how to look over a medical bill and try to get it reduced.
It can take time and research to figure out how to pay a medical bill. Your choices may also depend on your insurance company, how much money you have, where you live, and who gave you medical care.
In the end, your success will depend on your unique situation as well as how persistent you are and how well you can negotiate. Here are some ideas for what you can do:
Ask for a bill that lists each item. One of the first things to do is ask the health care provider for a bill that shows each charge. It should list everything that you are being charged for, with amounts and codes for each line. Check the bill for mistakes, like charges for services or medicines you didn't get or for the same thing more than once.
Read through the list of benefits (EOB). An EOB could come from your insurance company. Even though it's not a bill, you can look for differences between it and your itemized bill. If your insurance should have paid for part of your bill but didn't, you should talk to your insurance company about it.
Look into financial assistance policies. Low-income patients may be able to get financial help from hospitals, clinics, and other medical service providers. Some states even require hospitals, whether they make money or not, to have financial aid programs. But you might need to ask if they are free. The National Consumer Law Center has written a guide to help people with less money pay their medical bills.
Call the provider to find out what your choices are. Even if there are no mistakes, you can still call the provider to talk about your bill. You can ask if there are any waivers, hardship or relief programs, or if you can get a discount if you pay the full amount or a down payment quickly. Some providers may also offer low-interest or interest-free payment plans.
If you don't feel comfortable negotiating on your own, there are companies and people who will look at your bills and do the negotiating for you. But there may be a one-time fee or a fee based on how much you save, or both. Ask your employer or union representative if they can help you negotiate your medical bills. Sometimes this is possible.
Even though the negotiation process can be complicated, you can rest assured t hat a short delay won't hurt your credit, even if the bill is sent to collections.
Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, which are the three biggest consumer credit bureaus, don't put unpaid medical bills on your credit report until at least 180 days have passed since the bill was due. Even though paid collection accounts can still show up on credit reports, medical collection accounts that were paid by an insurance company will be taken off by the bureaus.
Can you pay less for your medical bills?
If you can't get your bill lowered, the provider or collection agency might agree to a settlement, which is a deal where you pay less than the full amount you owe.
If you called the provider's billing department to talk about a discount for paying in full or a down payment toward a larger payment, the option to settle what's owed may have already come up. But their first offer might have been too high, or the billing department might have tried to get you to sign up for a payment plan instead.
You could look at Healthcare Bluebook and FAIR Health to find out how much health care costs. These sites can give you an idea of how much the same procedures cost elsewhere and can be used as a reliable piece of information in your negotiations.
Also, keep in mind that health care providers may charge different rates depending on whether you are insured, in-network, or out-of-network. If you don't have insurance, check to see if you qualify for Medicaid or at least ask to pay the same amount as insurance companies.
You might need to mail or fax a letter if you want to make a settlement offer. Ask the provider how to send the offer, and then check back a few days later to make sure it was sent.
Look for help somewhere else
If you can't find a mistake and the provider won't work with you, you might want to look into other ways to get help with your medical bills. If you need to borrow money for medical costs, you might be able to get a credit card or a loan. But these shouldn't be your first choice, especially if paying off the debt will make it hard to pay for things you need. If you have a good credit score, you may be able to get loans at better rates.
If you haven't already, you might want to contact a medical billing advocate or negotiator for a professional solution if you haven't already. Some people may be willing to look at your bills for free to see if they can help.
You could also try to get help from charities that help people pay their medical bills. Some of these are geared toward specific kinds of patients, like children or people with certain illnesses. Through a pharmaceutical assistance program, pharmaceutical companies may also offer discounts or free prescriptions and medical supplies. Even though these won't always pay off your old bills, they may make your health care cheaper.
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