Posted on 11/12/2014 4:46:38 PM PST by SMGFan
Most of us know that it could cost us everything we own if we go to a hospital that isn’t covered by our insurance plan. But what if you’re unconscious and have no say in the matter? That’s the case for a Wisconsin woman who owes $50,000 to a hospital that claims she should just pay up and be happy she’s still alive.
The woman tells WISC-TV [via Reddit] that in Sept. 2013 she went into cardiac arrest and was taken by ambulance to a hospital that was out of her insurance network instead of the one — only a few blocks farther away — that accepts her Anthem Blue Cross coverage
(Excerpt) Read more at consumerist.com ...
Yeah, but you don’t end up financially ruined by the effects of that typically like individuals do all the time by the medical establishment.
Thanks to Ted Kennedy and HIPPA we can no longer work out a “Jethro Price” with the Doctor.
Gotta pay them health care administrators doncha know.
This would be the first time I’ve heard of insurance that doesn’t make an exception for emergencies. However you have to notify them as soon as you can.
“So, one price for insurance companies but another for people?”
Exactly. Go to a doctor or dentist and get the price for a procedure stating that you have no insurance. Then, go to the same doctor or dentist and get the price for in network and out of network.
Between the concept of unjust enrichment and not having a contract with them, getting out of it for ~cost plus 10 or 15% shouldn’t be that difficult...
Even IF they did sue her most likely she doesn’t have any non-exempt property so the hospital could wipe its south side with the civil judgment.
The only leverage the hospital would have is a judgment can be a drag on her credit. I had millions for years so I know.
The longer the judgment lives, the less it is worth! I once settled a 4.6 million judgment for $80,000. I never filed bankruptcy and eventually settled with all creditors.
A good gray headed lawyer will tell her all this. He likely will also tell her the hospital wins on quantum meruit alone.
And if the insurance companies policy is “ no coverage for out of network”?
The woman is an accounting student at the university.
Well there’s also the matter of the doctor having to recover money from the Insurance company which can involve a considerable effort paperwork/telephone wise. That effort shouldn’t come for free.
So why should she have to lose her credit cards and credit for 10 years in a bankruptcy to appease an insurance company hiding behind a hospital?
If she was incapacitated, extenuating circumstances prevail. Her insurance company needs to shut their mouth and pay at normal negotiated rates they would have paid had she been taken to the ‘network’ hospital and the hospital should shut it, too, and take the payment. Lady pays the deductible as if she was ‘network’ treated. Done deal. (And if someone is traveling to another state and needs emergency medical the above also needs to apply).
This lady’s story is a perfect example of the kind of medical services/insurance chaos and preditation that drove people to Zerocare’s arms in the first place. Nothing has changed. It needs to. It’s about time we put our foot down on all this nonsense and now is the right time to do it.
Just curious. What happens if someone gets ill while they’re on vacation and can’t get to a hospital in the network?
I guess she found out what was in Obamacare AFTER it was passed...
$40k of that cost went to pay Malpractice Insurance.
It means exactly what it was intended to mean.
Get vacation insurance. We are planning a big trip to Europe next year and purchased insurance for the trip.
Could you post a link to the story that you read? Because you seem to have facts that aren’t in the story linked to here.
Or do you just fill in the blanks off the top of your head?
Medicaid = free
It seems like the average deductible these days if you purchase your own insurance is around $5,000. For many Americans who purchase their own insurance - that IS enough to bankrupt them BEFORE they even get the bill from the hospital.
Just Having insurance is no protection from financial ruin.
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