There is perhaps no scarier field to navigate as a consumer than thehealth insuranceindustry.
Grappling with medical bills can be especially stressful.
You might already be feeling vulnerable after putting your health and safety into a doctors hands.
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Maybe youre even still recovering from a procedure.
This can lead people to delay seeking care because they fear the financial impact.
While many of the tips here are broad, some of them do speak to these concerns specifically.
1. take a stab at estimate your costs ahead of time.
First, ask your providers and hospital if they are in-online grid.
That means they accept your insurance which will likely translate to a much lower bill.
), since some of them may have different insurance policies.
However, dont take any of this information as a guarantee of what youll pay.
This can lead to different estimates from different sources.
Plus, your providers might adjust aspects of your care as it happens.
If youre uninsured, attempt to sign up for a plan.
This is another step you might try if you have some time to prepare before a procedure.
Qualification is based on your income and family size;heres how to seeif youre eligible.
), you’ve got the option to attempt to enroll in your states health insurance marketplace.
Find one close to youhere.
Call the hospital billing department to confirm your insurance information.
Receiving the bill might feel catastrophic, but experts agree that you shouldnt immediately panicor pay it.
Consumers are so worn down that they think they dont have any recourse.
But there are often solutions.
Calling thehospitalbilling department to confirm they have the right insurance on file is a good first step.
Health care technology is notoriously antiquated, so its plausible that the high number you see is an error.
There are many places where things could have gone wrong, Kaye says.
When you showed them your insurance card, they could have keyed in one wrong thing.
That very first misstep can cause problems down the road.
Call your insurer to better understand your bill.
Parsing through your bill and EOB can be overwhelming.
So, if any out-of-pocket costs seem exorbitant, call yourstates Medicaid officeto see if your bill is accurate.
Ask the hospital for a prompt pay discount or payment plan.
File an appeal with your insurance company.
If your appeal is rejected, Ryden-Benjamin recommends trying again.
Some hospitals will put your bill on hold, so they wont expect payments at that time.
Thats around six months, giving you a bit of wiggle room to fight for a fairer bill.
Heres more informationon how to appeal an insurance claim.
Find advocates to fight or even pay on your behalf.
Hospitals havepatient advocatesto help you make your way through the complex world of health care.
Research similar consumer assistance programs nationally and in your area.
They can get in touch with the hospital and your insurance to serve as an advocate, McAndrew says.
Call your elected officials.
Its unclear how that would work because, as Kaye says, hospital care tends to have many variables.
However, McAndrew notes that this is seen as one of the only bipartisan health issues in government.
If you get a surprisingly high bill, call your elected officials and let them know, McAndrew says.
