Help!!!!! Being billed $500!!!!!!!

Thanks! Since you worked in a hospital maybe you can explain why $19,883 isn't enough for my 8 hour stay!

Perhaps one reason is that with all teh contracted arrangements that are the result of HMO/PPO plans, cost have skyrocketed to cover everything including research for the procedures we now take for granted. And I am not bashing, I am just letting you know that support includes a bit of vinigar sometimes. You will be so much more healthy having had this that t eh 500 bux will be nothing ocmpared to what you would have spent over eating, missing work/school, and oterhthings that are PRICELESS. Calm down, be glad you HAVE this problem and make an arrangement. This world is pay to play...there is no free lunch.

This is a long shot, but may be worth a try.  Ask them for an itemized bill.  If you find any errors on it that may eat away some of what you owe.  I had breast reduction surgery over 10 years ago and when I got my bill a friend who was a nurse immediately noticed charges that should not have applied.  Sure enough when I took the itemized bill to my surgeon he checked off about $500 in overcharges...everything from charging me 2 of items I used one of down to listing medications my surgeon did not order.  In the end my portion of the bill shrunk from $800 to just about $300.  No matter how much you end up being responsible for, just make monthly payments of something...even $10 a month proves you're trying to pay it off and they'll take something over nothing anyday. Hope this helps, it does at least give you a sense of control about being able to do something.  I'm sorry you're having to go through this.  I rememeber being at that stage of my life and every penny counted.  Good luck.

What does your policy say about outpatient? What's your deductable or co-pay.

That's the way insurance companies and hospital work. You have an insurance plan. It will cover certain things. But the patient will cover certain things as well (ex co-pays, perscription co-pays and deductables). That's just the way it goes. It's always the big man trying to bring the little man down. But in the end it will make you a stronger person.

Outpatient surgery also has no copay.

Unfortunately, this does sound like a common practice.  I have a $100 per day copay for hospital visits but it did not cover my surgery because it was considered outpatient.  I had a $1300 copay which they set up on payments and I make them monthly.  You can definitely try appealing it or fighting it.  If it doesn't go your way, take some solace in the fact that it is interest free & I bet they set up a relatively low payment for you.

If you were only in the hospital wouldn't that be an OUTPATIENT stay?  What is your coverage for outpatient surgery?  Call the insurance company and ask for specific explainations of your charges and benefits...mine tried to say that the x-ray tech wasn't an IN NETWORK person...like I have control over who works in the hospital, or the ability to go somewhere else for the post-surgery flouro that needs to be done immediately following surgery.  Needless to say...the insurance company fixed the problem and paid it in full as they should have.  Lots of probs are mistakes or mis-billings.

An itemized bill isn't going to change the fact that your policy states you owe $500 for your stay. Seriously--don't take out a loan or put in on a credit card before you verify that the hospital won't work with you (which seems unlikely to me).  The reason $18k wasn't enough is because your insurance policy (the hospital charges have absolutely nothing to do with the amount you owe) states that is how much you owe, regardless of the charges (the hospital stay could've been $501.00 and you STILL would've owed $500).  And just so you know (and this is confusing and stupid but thus is medical billing), out of the $18k that the hospital billed, they were probably reimbursed about $2k and wrote the rest off.  Call your insurance company (and you are on the policy therefore you have every right to make inquiries), verify that is the correct amount owed, ask why, call the hospital, explain your situation, try to get a sliding scale discount, and tell them you can only pay $10 (or whatever) a month. Problem solved.

Well, the question is whether or not I owe it. My list of benefits clearly states in hospital surgery and out of hospital surgery to both have no copay so I don't understand why a preapproved surgery and hardly any stay would be called hospital rehab which is what I have a copay for.

I would call and see what you can find out from the insurance company themesleves.  If your haveing a hard time paying i am sure they will set some kind of payment plan up with you for the 500.00 when i was admitted in the hospital for another thing i had to pay 900.00 co pay and my payments are about 60 a month.  Just explain your situation to them.  Best wishes