how did you pay your insurance deductible?

[readyforchange2014 0]

I am brand new to this process; I haven't had an initial consultation yet but I'm trying to be proactive SO how did you pay your deductible in order to have surgery?

I already know my deductible is $3200 and must be paid prior to surgery. I have no idea how I will pay it as my credit is not good at all (I am working on it though).

[marfar7 1,533]

Actually, about a month before my revision, I found out that my co pay was going to be $5800 + my insurance co pay. 4 1/2 yrs ago I had my lapband put in and only owed 10% (or $1500), as Medicare covered most of it. About 3 yrs ago, I realized that I'd never in 10 yrs used my medicare Part B (drs office visits) (I'm a disabled vet so I get free VA care) so I quit paying the $110 monthly fee. AS I'm scheduling my surgery with my insurance coordinator at my dr office, she informs me that I need to pay the doctors portion. $5,800. I cried the whole way home (3 hrs). I have porr credit also and don't have an extra $6,000 lying around.

2 weeks later, while on vacation to my inlaws, they inquired how my slipped ;lapband was healing. We told them the dilemma. They immediately offered to lend us the money. My surgery was scheduled the next day.

We paid on it 3x ($250 mth) and then my MIL passed away. My FIL forgave our debt - basically becuz we moved 800 mi from home to move in with them to take care of my MIL, who had Parkinsons. I still feel bad about that.

I thank God for my in laws. U can't have better ones than mine. Have u tried carecredit.com? I don't think ur credit has to be perfect for it. It's for medical and dental procedures. Good luck to u!

[Get.Waisted 45]

Geesh that's a high deductible. My deductible was $500 which I met before my surgery so I didn't have to pay anything to the hospital b/c that's all they required upfront. My surgeon had a program fee of $750 ( quite a few do but it differs) which was due the week before surgery and I had to save and pinch pennies to get that together. I have an out of pocket max if $2300 that the hospital told me I would be responsible for but I had to switch hospitals if I wanted a closer date and when I did the OOP max was no longer a factor b/c the hospital didn't require it. So it varies based upon hospitals also.

[Kindle 8,667]

I was self pay because my insurance won't cover WLS. But even if they did, my deductible would have been $3000 (it's now $5000 thanks to Obamacare). I had been saving for a down payment on a new truck for 2 years. Then last spring I decided to have this surgery. It took another 6 months to come up with all the cash. I spent the time researching and preparing for surgery and my new lifestyle. Paid just over $7000 for surgery, travel expenses, supplements, Protein drinks, etc. and I still drive a 14 year old truck .

I have excellent credit, so I could have gotten a loan, or even just put it on a credit card, but I didn't want to spend all the extra money on fees and interest. If you don't have the credit to finance, you may have to do it the old fashioned way and save up for it. For me it has definitely been worth the long days of working overtime, the missed vacations, the missed concerts, and the not going "out on the town" with friends for 2 1/2 years. And it's way better than a new truck!

[Jersrose43 837]

My yearly deductible is $4500

The entire thing was eaten up during this process and a few other little things.

$2000 for endoscopy (surgeon, anesthesia, hospital). Paying it off $50 a month to hospital, $50 to anesthesia and $20 to the doc.

Not same hosp or surgeon for sleeve

$500 from shrink but had to pay $175 up front and he said that was his cash price. So that is all I pd but he billed much higher

Monthly visits to sleeved surgeon $175. Been paying off $50 every two weeks

Ultrasound of gallbladder $500 paying of $20 a month.

Slowly but surely.

Many of my lab work, GI work, cardio work was done by my pcp office and so I can pay them monthly without issue.

Urgent care for my kids when they had the flu I still have to pay. That one is gonna hurt

[Jersrose43 837]

Just remember you don't have to pay your deductibles up front to hospitals or physicians no matter what they say. They're getting tougher about it because a lot more people have deductible now and not paying. But if you give them a monthly payment plan most will help you out.

[allycatt98 35]

Just remember you don't have to pay your deductibles up front to hospitals or physicians no matter what they say. They're getting tougher about it because a lot more people have deductible now and not paying. But if you give them a monthly payment plan most will help you out.

It really depends on the doc and hospital. My deductible was $3000 with a $6000 MOOP. I needed a minor Gyn procedure (non-elective) and my doc required the full payment $491 at the pre-op appointment and Florida Hospital also requires payment upfront. They gave me three options: pay in full, 1/2 down and the rest split into 20 monthly payments or 10% down then 25 monthly payments (after reconciliation of the claim) thru Clear Balance, a financing program with credit score requirements. I opted for financing.

During my pre-op visit my doc told me that many of her surgeries have been cancelled by the hospital because of patient's inability to pay. Not surprising considering most people have deductibles in the $1000s. So having a doc and hospital that does not require up-front payment is definitely not the norm.

Side note: My Bariatric Surgeon billed me for the office consult. I'm grateful for that bc they quoted $240 and the EOB amount was only $94. ; ). I wonder what will happen in June?

[Jersrose43 837]

$240 is likely their charge and you pay what your insurance allows and charged to your deductible. Not the full charge.

Many hospitals are in for a rude awakening. Within next 5 years most everyone will have deductible and many of those will be in the high thousands.

It really is the only way to keep costs low for everyone and especially through the new jnsurance exchanges.

People with $10 copays see no issue going to a doctor or other to get something done. But when you have a deductible and that same service would be an office visit of $100 you think twice

[allycatt98 35]

$240 is likely their charge and you pay what your insurance allows and charged to your deductible. Not the full charge. <br><br> Many hospitals are in for a rude awakening. Within next 5 years most everyone will have deductible and many of those will be in the high thousands. <br><br> It really is the only way to keep costs low for everyone and especially through the new jnsurance exchanges. <br><br> People with $10 copays see no issue going to a doctor or other to get something done. But when you have a deductible and that same service would be an office visit of $100 you think twice

Nope the $240 was their estimated "negotiated" amount. The billed amount was even more.

I agree... I put off trips to the doc because of the deductible. The irony is that we can have either a Flex Spending or Healthcare Savings Account. I opted for the HSA bc my employer doesn't allow us to use the FSA card for medical expenses. Those claims have to be submitted for reimbursement after the HRA account is depleted. So I opted for a HSA this year bc I can use it for medical expenses, but I only have access to what has been deducted from my paycheck. When office visits are typically over $100, that $83 per pay period doesn't go far. It's better than nothing but still painful.

[Kindle 8,667]

When I had my fecal transplant, the surgical center said they would bill my insurance but they knew it would be denied. Despite being an almost 100% cure for the C. Diff infection I had insurance companies still consider fecal transplants as "experimental". (The 5 rounds of antibiotics I had been on for two months that failed to clear up the infection is, of course, what the insurance company approves of) Knowing it would be denied, the center required I pay their portion ($1500) in full beforehand. The doctor's portion ($1650) was also billed to my insurance, but I will end up paying it all because my deductible is $5000. That was very expensive diarrhea! But it worked, you F..... King worthless insurance company!

BTW, I used to have an awesome individual insurance plan that had $35 copays and $2000 deductible. But then along came Obamacare and my plan was discontinued because it didn't cover maternity (I have had an endometrial ablation so will never have kids). So the only Obamacare plan I could afford is this piece of shit HSA. The other ironic thing is even though I have a $5000 deductible, I can only contribute $3500 max to my HSA. there aren't enough cuss words on the planet to describe how I feel about this!

[Jersrose43 837]

The other ironic thing is even though I have a $5000 deductible, I can only contribute $3500 max to my HSA. there aren't enough cuss words on the planet to describe how I feel about this!

It's because you have single / individual coverage. The amount you can put into an HSA is legislated under the IRS tax code

Those funds are intended to be pretax this is why

Sounds like yours may be post tax but still legislated by tax code.

[readyforchange2014 0]

Ok thanks everyone for all of your responses.

So, I'm sorry for being kinda slow but I am still baffled by the deductible process.

My deductible was originally $3200 but when I took my ex off of my insurance it lowered to $1600.

I ended up paying $100 OOP for my psych eval and I just got the bill from my labs and X-rays and the hospital billed $1759 of which my insurance covered $1167.98. Does that mean I don't have to pay the full $1600 before surgery? I'm so confused.

When I contacted the surgeons office to ask if they had a payment plan option for my deductible prior to surgery they responded "you can put it in a credit card. Hope that helps"

...um, no that didn't help at all; credit wise I don't have the option of putting it on a credit card.

[msfitn2014 248]

My deductible was $3000 and all the appts and test ate that up, i had to pay the hospital $1100 and the dr $750 2 weeks b4 surgery. The hospital did offer a payment plan of dwnpymnt 1/2 and pay out the rest but I didnt...waiting on the anesthesia bill

[Jersrose43 837]

Ok thanks everyone for all of your responses. So, I'm sorry for being kinda slow but I am still baffled by the deductible process. My deductible was originally $3200 but when I took my ex off of my insurance it lowered to $1600. I ended up paying $100 OOP for my psych eval and I just got the bill from my labs and X-rays and the hospital billed $1759 of which my insurance covered $1167.98. Does that mean I don't have to pay the full $1600 before surgery? I'm so confused. When I contacted the surgeons office to ask if they had a payment plan option for my deductible prior to surgery they responded "you can put it in a credit card. Hope that helps" ...um, no that didn't help at all; credit wise I don't have the option of putting it on a credit card.

You are no longer insuring him so your employer reduces the deductible for a single person plan

Your insurance has contracted rates meaning they get a discount form the provider charges

If you have not met your deductible that bill for $1167.98 applies to your deductible and you have to pay that bill

All services you receive go to your deductible from whoever the provider you see until you reach the $1600.

So you may not have to pay the surgeon or hospital that $1600 because it could be met by another provider if service

Further once you meet the deductible. You may still be liable for a % of the services rendered up to another amount.

Thee amounts can be clearly communicated to you by your insurance carrier. Give them a call

Ask about deductible and out of pocket maximum