Medical debt has become a major problem in America. In fact US News cited that 1 in 5 American adults are in debt because of medical bills. Medical debt accounts for more than any other type of debt when it comes to bill collections. But the good news is that medical bills are negotiable. In fact, there’s a whole industry of experts that provide medical bill reduction services!
Here are some helpful steps to take for negotiating medical bills and lab fees:
1. Do your research.
Before going into a medical procedure, find out how much it will cost. Ask your doctor for the specific name of the procedure or if you can, ask for the billing code or Current Procedural Terminology (CPT). You also need to know your insurance policy details and deductibles. If you are armed with these details, negotiating medical bills will be much easier. Better yet, you can always hire a medical bill negotiation service!
2. Organize your records.
Always keep your medical records and take note of everything that happens after procedures. Organise all bills and paperwork as well as jotting down name, location and call reference numbers with billing personnel and health insurance customer service staff. Always make sure to get an itemized billing statement when you’re done.
3. Double check for errors.
Make sure to check through all the statements to make sure that the billing is accurate and correct. You don’t want to find out later on that you were billed for a drug or a medical procedure that wasn’t actually completed.
4. Contact an expert.
When time is of the essence and your credit is on the line, it’s time to hire a medical negotiation service to help fight you! It’s easier when you have somebody on your side to help negotiate your bills.
Action Medical Management offers medical bill reduction services where we review medical bills for state fee schedule reductions as well as apply for Preferred Provider Organisation or Network contracted discounts on your behalf. We use specialized software that matches the CPT Codes within a medical bill to the fee schedule of the jurisdictional state to determine the allowable amount payable for each medical service. Once all discounts are taken, an Explanation of Review (EOR) is mailed to the medical providers with the check issued as payment of services.
If you need to hire an expert to review your medical bills contact us today!