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Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 554 Likes: 4
4 point
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4 point
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 554 Likes: 4 |
What’s sad to me is that the real solution to this (free market) will probably never happen. Instead, people will and are getting so fed up with it that one day the masses will beg our politicians to take over healthcare. Which will only make all this worse.
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Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 9,138 Likes: 40
14 point
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14 point
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 9,138 Likes: 40 |
Yes - health insurance sucks. I recently had cataract surgery - according to our insurance everything was "supposed" to be covered. It was a little bit of a hassle to get everything approved - multiple visits to the Dr, explaining the poor night vision, closing one eye at a 4-way stop to see up and down the road,...etc.
The surgical center that the Dr. used was not in-plan, so a payment of $1,250 was required before they would allow me in. What chapped my butt the most about the whole ordeal was not the money, but that there were other folks there (in Montgomery) that I am pretty confident were on the "gubment tit" that payed a minimum amount for the same exact surgery. I have just about convinced myself that I need to begin having mental issues and start getting a "crazy check" from Uncle Sam.
"The struggle you're in today, is developing the strength you need for tomorrow."
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Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 8,276 Likes: 23
14 point
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14 point
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 8,276 Likes: 23 |
This "in network/out of network" is the biggest scam in insurance.
I know I've told the story here of when my son was born. Wife's water breaks at 10:30 on a Friday night...we're 100% having a baby. We load up, and drive 50 miles to Mobile Infirmary...an "in network" hospital. Her OB/GYN is out of town, so one of the other doctors in the group who is on call shows up...also "in network". Everything is awesome, as I've paid my $200 copay. Anesthesiologist and nurse anesthetist come in and do their thing. Son decides he isn't ready, so 17.5 hours later, decision is made to do a c-section. Goes great. Son enters the world, and we go home 2 days later.
One month later...we get a single bill in the mail from the anesthesiology group. Somewhere in the neighborhood of about $3200. Turns out, even though we did everything like we were supposed to do, the anesthesiologist that was on call that night was "out of network". Something we had ZERO control over. Insurance had paid 50% of the "out of network" charge, and they wanted me to pay the other half. I asked them how much they would have been paid if they were in my insurance's network, and it was about $1600. I told them to pound sand, and I'd send them $25/month until it either got paid off, or they got tired of getting that $25/month. About a year into this payment arrangement, with them calling wanting more money about every two weeks, they finally sent me a letter saying that if I were willing to send them $400, they'd consider it paid in full. I called and told them that I would send them $200, and consider it paid. They agreed...I made them send me an invoice for the total amount of $200 with a letter saying that would pay off the bs debt. When it arrived, I wrote a check, put "paid in full" in the "for" line, and never heard another word from them again. Still mad about it.
United Healthcare, for anyone wondering. Called "Surprise Billing". On Jan 1st, 2022 Congress outlawed this. ER physicians and anesthesiologists were notorious for doing this.
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