Okay friends, i have to ask has anyone had this happen to them?
Maybe someone can offer advice ?
Im obviously green..
I got approved for surgery, and called hosptial to find out what left over bills after my insurance paid their part would i need to pay ,because if they were to high, i wouldnt be able to have the surgery. and if it was an okay amount i needed to get set up on payment arrangements.
I spoke to the financial Dept.
The nice lady on the other end tells me, oh,
Dont worry about it .Our hospital excepts what ever the amount my insurance companies pay.  Wow!!! i said really? I asked her to put that in writting and that i needed her name , she tells me not to worry everyone in her dept. knows this is how they handle things and i dont need that. 
Thats just awesome, So i have the surgery thinking i was good to go.
I even told people about them and how wonderful they were to be like that. Boy was i a fool.

Okay well i just got a bill for 38,000 dollars!!!
What can i doo? Anyone with ideas?
Im an idiot!!!
i could have went to spain and pain 20k if i had that kind of money.

Depressed and broke.  :(

Take deep breaths. Don't panic.

First, are you sure that it's a bill and not just a statement? I receive statements from my insurance company about everything they pay, and if your document came from the insurance company it is not a bill and not representative of the hospital.

If you are sure it's a bill, have you spoken to anyone at the hospital (or their billing office) about it yet? 

Lastly, are there any out-of-pocket limits? My insurance has an annual OOP limit of $3k. Anything I am charged over that amount is covered 100% by my insurance company. If it is a bill and your hospital's billing office insists you pay it, you may have more luck requiring your insurance to stick to their OOP limitations than trying to argue the bill.

One thing you've got to be careful with is that usually everyone who has a part in your surgery bills you separately. The person you spoke to on the phone may have been telling you the truth. If she represented your surgeon, perhaps you owe him no more than what your insurance paid, but you're now receiving a bill for the hospital, the anesthesiologist, and any other "supplies" or "services".

Assuming there is no way out of paying this bill, I would make sure to get everything you're charged for in a line by line item description. That way you can make sure they didn't pad the bill. 

Good luc****rtainly want to hear how this comes out.

 Thanks for thhe reply and yes its a bill, 
I already called the hospital back and they said , well that was left from my bill. 
My insurance paid 48,000 of it and this is mine so they say. 
I told the lady what was told before surgery and she said she sure why he person
Told me that but yes they do except payments.
I almost past out when she told me this. 

 Ok, well, I would still ask for an itemized statement so that you can dispute charges that were applied in error (if there are any, and it happens all the time). 

Other than that, I think you'll have to seek legal advice, because this is out of my depth. I'm pretty sure you signed something that said you'll pay anything your insurance company doesn't. (I get that form all the time from doctors.) Anything in writing is going to trump what some office person said on the phone.

Please keep us informed. 

 Thank you ,  i will keep u informed. 

Okay, I may be a silly Canuck, but are they trying to say that the surgery cost $86,000??? WTF? I thought even self-pay in the states was more like $40,000 tops. What a scam!!!

Oh wait, I know what happened...maybe you forgot to tell them you didn't want the 14 karat gold staples.

Sorry, to hear about this. This should be a happy time. Wishing you well.

American health insurance and payments to providers are a mystery to just about everyone.  Insurance companies and hospitals make deals in the devil's closet.  My DS bill was around $86,000.  My insurance paid a deeply discounted amount.  The hospital then billed my secondary insurance for the balance.  My secondary refused to pay stating that the hospital had agreed to to accept what my primary paid.  It further stated that if they tried to collect the balance from me, it would negate any deal they had when my secondary was other patient's primary.  Confused?  Anyway, the hospital had to write off what I "owed"  Also, it's not unusual for a hospital to offer a discount to self-pay patients then collect more from other patient's insurance companies for the same service.

As for the OP, I would be truly shocked if any hospital put their expected payment in writing.  It's all voodoo and magicians and hospitals  almost never reveal their secrets.  And when they do, it's almost always misleading.  I just had a test and the hospital called my insurance to see what the payment was.  When I registered they said it was all paid for by my insurance.  However, according to the statement from my insurance company, I owe $38.

I know right?
I cant believe the price but i will be getting
a list of what all this is for. geez, cant be the food..ugh.

Wow. I'm speechless.

I meekly reply: Go medicare, eh!

Read your Insurance coverage carefully then the insurance company. If you were approved and have a max out of pocket then you should be fine.  They can deal with the Hospital. It is common to get a bill "for the balance" Tons of people just pay it with out questioning it and the hoslital will gladly accept.

I ave a 70/30 with a max of 5,000 out of pocket. So the most I will pay is 5k. But of course I have to be approved for surgery first.

Good Luck.
Whit

I did pay my out of pocket yearly max of 5,000 that was ate up by all the testing before surgery, i also paid what was left for my surgeons fee's before surgery, i thought i was good.
Im gonna try and fight it because i simply have no choice, i could have bought a house. well not a nice one, but.

Along with a copy of your insurance policy, I would make sure that you have a copy of the "explanation of benefits" from the insurance company.That should tell you several very specific things:1) what the hospital billed your insurance; 2) what the "agreed upon" amount is; 3) what the insurance paid; and 4)what your copay, if any, can be. You didn't mention how long ago your surgery was, but sometimes the hospital bills on a regular schedule, and your insurance may not have finished paying. SOme time ago, my father had emergency surgery, and I remember the billing lady at the hospital telling my mom: "You're going to get a bill, and your tendency is going to be to pay it. But don't." She then went on to explain that they bill before they've gotten all the insurance payments in, so, for a big surgery, it may take several months before it's all figured out.
So take a few more deep breaths. Gather info, but try not to let the stress get to you. Thinking good thoughts for you. J

Excellent advice.  Wait for that EOB statement then ask more questions if necessary.  A friend was getting billed for a massive mistake made by the hospital then they tried to get her to pay for THEIR mistake.  Her insurance actually helped her get it straightened out and she was very satisfied with the outcome.   The hospital had to pay her back some of her co-pay. This is one case where I even had to applaud a usually evil insurance company.

Amanda,

If the max out of pocket you can pay per policy year is 5k and you have paid that amount out already, I don't know how the hospital can be billing you for the rest.  Insurance companies and hospitals contractually agree to what the usual and customary charges are that will be paid, so I don't see how you are going to end up paying a huge bill. 

I tend to agree with one of the other posters who said that it may be that the insurance company hasn't finished paying out yet.  It stands to reason that it will take some time for all of the payments to be made, and everytime they pay the hospital, that 38k will be decreasing.

Please keep us posted... I am pre-op and of course even though I've read my insurance info a thousand times and even have it printed out and in a binder, this still frightens me.

Hang in there

Yesterday I call both the insurance company and the hospital , what i was told was that the Hospital is an out of network hospital so they have no agreed price. How ever the insurance company doesnt have a Dr. in their network that performs the DS. ugh.
Again i told the hospital I called and wanted to get the amounts and a payment plan before surgery and was told not to worry that they except what ever the insurance pays but they said the only thing they can do is put the collections on hold for 30 days till I figure out what to do.
So nice of them.

That's a big bummer. I would think it would be something the Dr's staff would verify prior to surgery when they submit for approvals. I know I have to have Surgery at a COE Center of Excellence.
God Luck.
Whit 

Let them right it off at the end of the year. Say they will get it when you have it. What are the going to do Repo your surgery.

Hospitals do turn people over to collection agencies.  I had a bill for about $35.  One week after I got the bill, I got a call from a collection agency.  What pissed me off is that I worked for the hospital that billed me. 

As Southern Lady said, do not pay anything (or panic****il you have all your EOBs.  You can work out a payment plan.  They are a business so they won't accept whatever you can send them whenever you feel like it.

Hospitals are very notorious for billing errors.  Your insurance company may be able to help.

 I just feel so bad that I let myself get in such bad physical shape 
That I needed surgery to help myself then turn around and cause terrible grief to my family
For  a huge bill., hey don't deserve what ive done to them.  :(

Amanda, I understand that you're feeling really badly about this--any of us would be upset--but please don't beat yourself up so badly.  I am sure that, even with the expense, your family are happy to have you around alot longer than could be expected if you remained obese.   And, even if you looked at it purely financially, you will probably be able to earn that sum many times over simply by becoming healthier and having a longer work life.  That money is an investment in your future, and in your family's future.  It's a good thing that you've made the choice to take care of yourself.

While I think you're worth the investment...I still want you to take a good look at what your insurance policy says your benefits are.  I am guessing, given the figures that you gave us earlier, you'll find that it says that your co-pay is 40% for an out of network provider.  It should also list the out of pocket max both for in network and out of network.  While the max for out of network is probably higher--in my policy, it's double the in network--I bet there still is one. 

Check into that; also keep checking in with us.   While I expect that you'll end up paying more than the $0 you originally expected, I doubt that you'll have to pay that whole amount.

And remember to keep breathing.  It's important that you take good care of yourself, and don't let the stress get to you.  J