First off, she had a MRI at a radiology clinic. She was told up front what her portion of the fee would be. She paid that at her time of visit. Now, we know that most times this is only an "estimate". The amount owed can go up or down a little. When I worked in a radiology office, we always called the patients insuance company to find out what their deductible was, their out-of-pocket and how much had been met so far. This would give us a guildeline for what the patient owed. We usually nailed it exactly, but if there were outstanding claims that the insurance company got before ours, sometimes the patients portions were met, but just didn't show up on paper yet.
Anyway, my relative went to a preferred provider, so that she got the best possible benefit from her insuance. She was quite surprised when she received a bill for a substanial amount of money. After reviewing her EOB (Explanation Of Benefits) with what was paid, adjusted and what she paid, she figured that she owed nothing. She called the radiology office and gave them her payment information with them, and went over her EOB. In the end, it sounds like they didn't take the correct adjustment and billed her for this, after she made her original payment. Had she not known to look into this and just paid it, she would most likely have been out hundreds of dollars.
The same thing happened with her doctors office. Same scenario. She paid her portion due at the time of service and was billed again for a substantial amount of money. Not only did they do this once, but twice!
How many unsuspecting people do you think overpay their bills and think nothing of it? I know from experience, that unless you advocate for yourself and keep track of your claims, no one else will do it for you.
Have you had any similiar experiences? Have you ever had to question any bills? Do you have any outstanding bills that you feel you don't owe on? If so, maybe I can help. Just email me your questions, (you don't need to give me any personal information, numbers or anything like that). I can tell you what to look for, and how to go about getting it corrected.
I hope this never happens to any of you, but if you think you have been billed in error, don't be embarrased to call and ask questions. After all, you probably pay a lot of money for your insurance in the first place, and having to pay extra, just doesn't make sense!
