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Ridiculous of course. When you don't have insurance or are out of network no rate has been negotiated. I recall when I had my accident few years back (the one before last) and was taken to emergency room, I got bill for $38K. Of course I had a sternum fracture. However, I doubt that matters.
Regarding doctors being crooks, don't get me started. The problem is we think incompetence, fraud, etc does not occur in the "noble profession". It is easy to imagine these things when buying a car, or house, or getting some home repair done, etc. However, it is hard to imagine the person in whose hand you are putting your health could possibly do something like this. I know better.
Now why insurance paid up that much money I am not able to comprehend.
Wanted to add, the hospital put lien on house and everything. Any contact I had with hospital staff was rebuffed. No phone calls back, nothing in writing or emails. I was forced to hire lawyer. That's how the game is played.
The guy who hit me had liability insurance of only $30K. Lawyer took $10K. Hospital negotiated charges down to $18K. I got $2k as compensation. My wife told me "you are still alive". I said "Yeah, but certain people shouldn't have been born".
I had to laugh at one of the visuals - Park Avenue (0:47) - what else would one expect?
I have a couple of relatives with similar experiences. One had back surgery and received additional bills for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Fortunately this incident, like the one in the news story, happened in NY. So this relative could file a surprise bill complaint with NYS. It took a few months but ultimately the bills vanished. There was some settlement reached between doctors and insurer for far less than the original bill.
The other visited a new doctor who took a blood sample and had "routine" blood work done. Those tests rang up a bill of several hundred dollars. This relative wound up stuck with the bill because the insurance was a high deductible plan. The doctor's response when asked about why all those tests were run was: Oh, I thought you had insurance.
My personal experience with lab tests has been somewhat better. When a doctor has sent my blood sample to an out of network lab in error, the insurer has declined to pay and the lab has eaten the cost. The difference is that my lab bills are only around $25, and it's cheaper for the lab to drop the charge than to pursue it.
Wanted to add, the hospital put lien on house and everything. Any contact I had with hospital staff was rebuffed. No phone calls back, nothing in writing or emails. I was forced to hire lawyer. That's how the game is played.
The guy who hit me had liability insurance of only $30K. Lawyer took $10K. Hospital negotiated charges down to $18K. I got $2k as compensation. My wife told me "you are still alive". I said "Yeah, but certain people shouldn't have been born".
"... Certain people shouldn't have been born." INDEED.
Someone with deep pockets needs to sue all these bastards!!
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization.
Comments
Regarding doctors being crooks, don't get me started. The problem is we think incompetence, fraud, etc does not occur in the "noble profession". It is easy to imagine these things when buying a car, or house, or getting some home repair done, etc. However, it is hard to imagine the person in whose hand you are putting your health could possibly do something like this. I know better.
Now why insurance paid up that much money I am not able to comprehend.
PS - And my parents were doctors !!!
The guy who hit me had liability insurance of only $30K. Lawyer took $10K. Hospital negotiated charges down to $18K. I got $2k as compensation. My wife told me "you are still alive". I said "Yeah, but certain people shouldn't have been born".
I have a couple of relatives with similar experiences. One had back surgery and received additional bills for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Fortunately this incident, like the one in the news story, happened in NY. So this relative could file a surprise bill complaint with NYS. It took a few months but ultimately the bills vanished. There was some settlement reached between doctors and insurer for far less than the original bill.
The other visited a new doctor who took a blood sample and had "routine" blood work done. Those tests rang up a bill of several hundred dollars. This relative wound up stuck with the bill because the insurance was a high deductible plan. The doctor's response when asked about why all those tests were run was: Oh, I thought you had insurance.
My personal experience with lab tests has been somewhat better. When a doctor has sent my blood sample to an out of network lab in error, the insurer has declined to pay and the lab has eaten the cost. The difference is that my lab bills are only around $25, and it's cheaper for the lab to drop the charge than to pursue it.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization.
It's their game and your the victim!!