Comments on: More Fun With Medical Bills http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/ Firedoglake weblog Thu, 26 Nov 2009 13:24:17 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Taffy http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944760 Taffy Wed, 05 Sep 2007 15:56:48 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944760 <p>Christy, have you printed the Micheal Moore Sicko card and presented it to the insurance company ? I’ve read of a number of instances where the sight of it caused insurance company reversals in hours or days.</p> Christy, have you printed the Micheal Moore Sicko card and presented it to the insurance company ? I’ve read of a number of instances where the sight of it caused insurance company reversals in hours or days.

]]> By: Terry http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944627 Terry Wed, 05 Sep 2007 14:38:52 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944627 <p>Oh, and as far as the American Medical Association goes, read this horror story: <a href="http://splendid.backpackit.com/pub/689592">http://splendid.backpackit.com/pub/689592</a> - in last year’s election the AMA mailed out postcards claiming that the Phillips family - Westboro Baptist Church, demonstrators at dead soldiers’ funerlas - were “peace activists.” Really.</p> Oh, and as far as the American Medical Association goes, read this horror story: http://splendid.backpackit.com/pub/689592 – in last year’s election the AMA mailed out postcards claiming that the Phillips family – Westboro Baptist Church, demonstrators at dead soldiers’ funerlas – were “peace activists.” Really.

]]> By: Terry http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944595 Terry Wed, 05 Sep 2007 14:22:05 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944595 <p>It’s not just the insurance companies. We conceived our second child (middle child) between coverages, so we had no insurance for his birth. We were, we thought, right on top of expenses.</p> <p>My wife went into labor in the afternoon, so we spent the night in a birthing room. My son was born at 1:30 am. At 6:30 we were still in the delivery room, exhausted, begging to be able to go to a hospital room and relax. We were told, repeatedly, that “your room is not ready.”</p> <p>Finally, about 7 am, we got to move to a room.</p> <p>Imagine our surprise when the University of Michigan sent us a bill for that night for both a hospital room and the delivery room.</p> <p>We were told that it was standard procedure to keep a hospital room ready when parents were in the delivery room, so we had to pay for both.</p> <p>No one cared to hear that we had been repeatedly told that there was no hospital room ready for us.</p> <p>A year later, after the University of Michigan hospital sicced a credit agency after us, we had to pay a lot of money for the room that was “not ready” for us.</p> It’s not just the insurance companies. We conceived our second child (middle child) between coverages, so we had no insurance for his birth. We were, we thought, right on top of expenses.

My wife went into labor in the afternoon, so we spent the night in a birthing room. My son was born at 1:30 am. At 6:30 we were still in the delivery room, exhausted, begging to be able to go to a hospital room and relax. We were told, repeatedly, that “your room is not ready.”

Finally, about 7 am, we got to move to a room.

Imagine our surprise when the University of Michigan sent us a bill for that night for both a hospital room and the delivery room.

We were told that it was standard procedure to keep a hospital room ready when parents were in the delivery room, so we had to pay for both.

No one cared to hear that we had been repeatedly told that there was no hospital room ready for us.

A year later, after the University of Michigan hospital sicced a credit agency after us, we had to pay a lot of money for the room that was “not ready” for us.

]]> By: F. Jolly http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944420 F. Jolly Wed, 05 Sep 2007 12:07:10 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944420 <p>My mother, who died in 1991,was fully insured-both Medicare and excellent BC/BS. She never used any doctor or service that was not “preferred provider.” It took a full year to resolve her bills. The stack was about 2 feet high. In the end, all were paid by her insurance. At the time, I worked for a member of Congress. I pointed out to him that this was a very expensive way to do medical care. While he agreed with me, nothing changes.</p> <p>Over a year after her death, I got yet another bill. My attorney pointed out that we had closed probate and that the provider was SOL.</p> My mother, who died in 1991,was fully insured-both Medicare and excellent BC/BS. She never used any doctor or service that was not “preferred provider.” It took a full year to resolve her bills. The stack was about 2 feet high. In the end, all were paid by her insurance. At the time, I worked for a member of Congress. I pointed out to him that this was a very expensive way to do medical care. While he agreed with me, nothing changes.

Over a year after her death, I got yet another bill. My attorney pointed out that we had closed probate and that the provider was SOL.

]]> By: bbuster http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944402 bbuster Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:21:18 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944402 <p>When my mom was in the throes of what became her final illness, we emptied the contents of her checking account. She, while earning some very good money in her late 70’s as webmaster for some astrology groups (she had some few years earlier stubbornly taught herself HTML so she do her own site) converted all checks to cash, which she kept in her room at my sister’s.<br /> When the hospital which had robbed her of months, perhaps years more of life, spoke to me about settling the co-pay portion of her bill as they busily shuffled her over to a ’skilled nursing’ facility (translation: go away and die and free up one of our beds) I looked the billing clerk in the eye and said she had nothing, was destitute. No, we were not responsible for her bills (and had avoided signing anything that said so.)<br /> Eat it, bastards. You, and Dr. Death, who’s a whole other story.<br /> Mom insisted we sign a DNR order because she was adamant about not being hooked up to machines after repeated attempts to resuscitate, so the hospital interpreted that as permission to dose her, without informing us, with very large amounts of morphine to speed up her shuffling off the mortal coil, and to keep her immobile, so she wouldn’t need much attention. It was only when she was coming off the morphine at the skilled nursing facility that we realized what they’d done.</p> When my mom was in the throes of what became her final illness, we emptied the contents of her checking account. She, while earning some very good money in her late 70’s as webmaster for some astrology groups (she had some few years earlier stubbornly taught herself HTML so she do her own site) converted all checks to cash, which she kept in her room at my sister’s.
When the hospital which had robbed her of months, perhaps years more of life, spoke to me about settling the co-pay portion of her bill as they busily shuffled her over to a ’skilled nursing’ facility (translation: go away and die and free up one of our beds) I looked the billing clerk in the eye and said she had nothing, was destitute. No, we were not responsible for her bills (and had avoided signing anything that said so.)
Eat it, bastards. You, and Dr. Death, who’s a whole other story.
Mom insisted we sign a DNR order because she was adamant about not being hooked up to machines after repeated attempts to resuscitate, so the hospital interpreted that as permission to dose her, without informing us, with very large amounts of morphine to speed up her shuffling off the mortal coil, and to keep her immobile, so she wouldn’t need much attention. It was only when she was coming off the morphine at the skilled nursing facility that we realized what they’d done.

]]> By: bob h http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944401 bob h Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:19:14 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944401 <p>It seems that in this fucked-up system there are “good” and “bad” diseases to have as far as medical coverage.</p> <p>In my wife’s case, End Stage Renal Disease was super in terms of complete coverage of bills. In the case of cancer, there seem to be big holes in coverage. You have to be careful which disease you get.</p> It seems that in this fucked-up system there are “good” and “bad” diseases to have as far as medical coverage.

In my wife’s case, End Stage Renal Disease was super in terms of complete coverage of bills. In the case of cancer, there seem to be big holes in coverage. You have to be careful which disease you get.

]]> By: Ian Welsh http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944359 Ian Welsh Wed, 05 Sep 2007 07:45:16 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944359 <p><a href="#comment-942741"><em>Steve-AR @ 30</em></a></p> <blockquote><p><a href="#comment-942732"><em>scarecrow @ 23</em></a></p> <blockquote><p>Keep doing this. Can someone volunteer to create a “Hugh’s List” of cases of insurance company bad faith denials of medical claims?</p></blockquote> <p>“Bad faith” tends to get their attention. When my insurance co. paid $575 on a $15,750 bill for emergency out-patient surgery..I got the “tough shit” run around until I started talking “bad faith” and State insurance commission.</p></blockquote> <p>Depending on the state, complaints to the state insurance comission can be a real threat (speaking as ex-compliance staff for an insurer. It can get attention from the compliance staff, who tend to be more sympathetic than the line staff (who mostly have no discretion anyway. They’re just following the rulebook.)</p> Steve-AR @ 30

scarecrow @ 23

Keep doing this. Can someone volunteer to create a “Hugh’s List” of cases of insurance company bad faith denials of medical claims?

“Bad faith” tends to get their attention. When my insurance co. paid $575 on a $15,750 bill for emergency out-patient surgery..I got the “tough shit” run around until I started talking “bad faith” and State insurance commission.

Depending on the state, complaints to the state insurance comission can be a real threat (speaking as ex-compliance staff for an insurer. It can get attention from the compliance staff, who tend to be more sympathetic than the line staff (who mostly have no discretion anyway. They’re just following the rulebook.)

]]> By: Leila http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944258 Leila Wed, 05 Sep 2007 06:33:29 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944258 <p>I am late to this comment thread. Jane, you are a sterling warrior goddess and I love and admire you immensely.</p> <p>Finding out about your insurance troubles makes me want to swear.</p> <p>When are we going to wake up in this country? Good grief.</p> I am late to this comment thread. Jane, you are a sterling warrior goddess and I love and admire you immensely.

Finding out about your insurance troubles makes me want to swear.

When are we going to wake up in this country? Good grief.

]]> By: phil http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944069 phil Wed, 05 Sep 2007 05:22:22 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-944069 <p>What we need to do *the day after* single-payer National Health Care goes into effect is get the DOJ to start a massive RICO prosecution of the companies and their executives who ran the for-profit health insurance industry. “Turn over a couple of rocks” and you’ll have enough to bankrupt and put the lot of them in prison for a long, long time.</p> What we need to do *the day after* single-payer National Health Care goes into effect is get the DOJ to start a massive RICO prosecution of the companies and their executives who ran the for-profit health insurance industry. “Turn over a couple of rocks” and you’ll have enough to bankrupt and put the lot of them in prison for a long, long time.

]]> By: Maura http://firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-943971 Maura Wed, 05 Sep 2007 04:47:43 +0000 http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/09/04/more-fun-with-medical-bills/#comment-943971 <p><a href="#comment-942718"><em>zennurse @ 12</em></a></p> <blockquote><p>Hi Jane.</p> <p>The really heartbreaking thing is that the elderly often simply pay them, then stop taking their meds and eat one meal a day to make up for it. I’ve seen it.</p> <p>In the thread the other day when you posted a bill, there were offers of help and I sure hope you accepted. Although having the box there to p ss you off might just be good for your fighting spirit; you would know that better than I. I know there’s not much we can do from here in the toobs, but</p> <p>blessings are here anyway, as always.</p></blockquote> <p>I saw this all the time with my mom and dad. It’s not in their nature to question authority. And “Blue Cross” was to them a brand they could trust…they remember “Blue Cross” from its nonprofit days a long, long time ago. So if BC/BS denied coverage, my dad just trusted they were right and dutifully paid the bills that were sent to him.</p> <p>It wasn’t ’till I moved back here to take care of him full time that I saw the enormity of bills he was paying (with no income at all other than Social Security!!!!) that he didn’t need to pay. They count on that. They count on people not fighting back, not having time to spend hours and hours on hold, etc. </p> <p>I worked really hard to intercept my dad’s mail after I moved up here, but my dad was a proud man who never fully ceded control to me…but the last six months or so, the enormity of worry and stress he experienced because of erroneous bills was heartbreaking. </p> <p>(And don’t get me started about AARP’s insurance policies…the saddest memory I have of my dad is when he realized, just a few months before his death, that the AARP life insurance policy that he thought he had and that he had dutifully paid premiums for for over a decade had actually become null and void when he turned 80. AARP kept taking monthly deductions from his checking account so he thought the policy was still in place, but they never notified him that he needed to convert his term life policy to a whole life policy. So he died knowing all those premiums to AARP went down the drain, and he had no life insurance and that his kids would have to pay for his burial because he didn’t understand the fine print of his policy. I hate AARP for that…I just assumed that they’d be advocates for seniors and would try to help seniors understand in plain and clear terms what they’re paying for!)</p> <p>This whole experience has actually made me consider going into a field that advocates for senior citizens…my heart breaks thinking about so many people who are growing old alone and have no one to help them navigate our confusing and downright cruel health care/elder care system in this country.</p> zennurse @ 12

Hi Jane.

The really heartbreaking thing is that the elderly often simply pay them, then stop taking their meds and eat one meal a day to make up for it. I’ve seen it.

In the thread the other day when you posted a bill, there were offers of help and I sure hope you accepted. Although having the box there to p ss you off might just be good for your fighting spirit; you would know that better than I. I know there’s not much we can do from here in the toobs, but

blessings are here anyway, as always.

I saw this all the time with my mom and dad. It’s not in their nature to question authority. And “Blue Cross” was to them a brand they could trust…they remember “Blue Cross” from its nonprofit days a long, long time ago. So if BC/BS denied coverage, my dad just trusted they were right and dutifully paid the bills that were sent to him.

It wasn’t ’till I moved back here to take care of him full time that I saw the enormity of bills he was paying (with no income at all other than Social Security!!!!) that he didn’t need to pay. They count on that. They count on people not fighting back, not having time to spend hours and hours on hold, etc.

I worked really hard to intercept my dad’s mail after I moved up here, but my dad was a proud man who never fully ceded control to me…but the last six months or so, the enormity of worry and stress he experienced because of erroneous bills was heartbreaking.

(And don’t get me started about AARP’s insurance policies…the saddest memory I have of my dad is when he realized, just a few months before his death, that the AARP life insurance policy that he thought he had and that he had dutifully paid premiums for for over a decade had actually become null and void when he turned 80. AARP kept taking monthly deductions from his checking account so he thought the policy was still in place, but they never notified him that he needed to convert his term life policy to a whole life policy. So he died knowing all those premiums to AARP went down the drain, and he had no life insurance and that his kids would have to pay for his burial because he didn’t understand the fine print of his policy. I hate AARP for that…I just assumed that they’d be advocates for seniors and would try to help seniors understand in plain and clear terms what they’re paying for!)

This whole experience has actually made me consider going into a field that advocates for senior citizens…my heart breaks thinking about so many people who are growing old alone and have no one to help them navigate our confusing and downright cruel health care/elder care system in this country.

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