5 Things To Do Before You Pay a Medical Bill, According to Money Coach Chloé Daniels
Written by
Heather Altamirano
Edited by
Cynthia Measom
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Medical bills are putting a financial strain on Americans. According to Peterson-KFF, an estimated 14 million people are over $1,000 in medical debt, while 3 million people owe more than $10,000 in medical bills.
However, rising healthcare costs and medical debt aren’t the only issues people grapple with. Approximately 45% of insured Americans believed they received a bill or copayment in the last year for services they believed should have been covered by their insurance, according to new Commonwealth Fund survey. The survey also found that among people who reported billing mistakes or coverage denials, less than half challenged those issues because they weren’t aware they had the right to do so.
To help, money coach Chloé Daniels offered the following advice. You might want to take notes before your pay your next medical bill.
Ask for an Itemized Receipt
After receiving a surprising bill, Daniels said she called her doctor’s office and “had them take me through all the different bills I had,” she said in a recent Instagram video. By doing this, Daniels caught a mistake-one of the bills had incorrect insurance information.
Ensure All Bills Are Sent to Insurance
Another error that happens, according to Daniels, is that not everything is sent to insurance.
“Make sure, while you’re on the phone with them — that they sent everything through insurance,” she emphasized. “Sometimes — they only sent part.”
Ask for the Medical Codes
Before you end the call with the doctor’s office or hospital, get the medical codes for the tests or procedures done during your visit.
“Once you have an understanding of what has/hasn’t gone through insurance, for anything that wasn’t covered but should’ve been — ask for the codes,” Daniels advised.
Call Your Insurance Company
Daniels said the next step before paying a medical bill is to contact your insurance company and ask why those particular codes weren’t covered. Additionally, if you speak to someone you don’t feel is giving you accurate information, ask to speak to someone else.
Make a Cash Deal
The final thing to do is try to settle the debt in cash and ask for a discount if you do owe money.
“You may find out that your insurance was supposed to cover them — if so, your insurance should call the billing department at your doctor’s office,” Daniels said. “If not — you call back your doctor’s office and ask the following: ‘If I pay in full with cash today — is there any kind of discount you can give me? I’d love to settle this today if possible.'”
She added that if the person you speak to about settling the bill in cash for a discounted rate says no, you should call back again and speak to someone else. “You never know how the answer may change when you get a different person on the phone.”
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