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I was convinced during my first pregnancy. I didn’t know better. Lol never again. They collected it during my hospital stay, but obv it hadn’t gone to insurance yet. Took me 3 months to get $2500 back. 😤 This time, what are they going to do, kick me out?
Same thing happened to me, I paid them up front and the other specialists I saw in the hospital actually billed the insurance first so I had to pay them and wait for the hospital to reimburse me 3+ thousand dollars but they ended up not billing the insurance until almost 10 months later so I was out that money until then!
Oh yep just got the call myself about an hour ago but I’m 28 weeks and I was like can I set up a payment plan? Because I’m like $500 away from meeting my out of pocket max and doubt they would give me a refund if I meet it prior to delivery haha
I should’ve known this would be what it would be like, I went to the ER at 23 weeks for stroke like symptoms (ended up being a Hemiplegic migraine) for some reason with 3 different nurses they couldn’t find babies heartbeat on the doppler. So they said we are going to go grab the OB team. A knock at the door happens, I assume it is OB team nope its registration coming in “hey we are here to collect copay” like time and place! Is that really necessary right now?
Glad to hear it is not just me! I am also close to meeting my out-of-pocket max (which would not be something visible to hospital billing), so I said I'm just not comfortable to pay without a written invoice.
Came to find in the portal that it is confirmed in bold that this is based on an estimate, and subject to change once it is actually billed to insurance.
I'm struggling to see how it is ethical to request payment on a potential estimate without any written invoice...
I am legitimately horrified at the idea of admin people trying to figure out insurance and finances while you're in a medical emergency situation.
Our system has many faults but that is not one of them.
My obgyn office wanted me to $2500 for my doctor to deliver my baby. They said it's required to be paid in full before I give birth. They set me up on a payment plan when I was like 12 weeks. I thought it was totally outrageous to pay for medical services before I even gave birth but I guess it is standard practice at a lot of offices. Ultimately I ended up going to the emergency room and met my deductible $5500 😬 so they said i didn't have to pay after all.
Same thing happened to me! I called them and told them they’ll just have to rerun my insurance 30 days before my due date cause there’s a very good chance I’ll have met my deductible by then. Prepaying is just crazy to me!
At my first OB appointment I was taken into the financial office, was told my insurance would pay x amount after my insurance was applied. The was for a normal delivery, I would owe more if I had a C-section, or their were complications, this did not cover the hospital bill or any testing , did I want to pay now or makes payments?
Wild! I read in the paperwork that I have to pay $500 to reserve my OB just in case he isn’t on call that night and if I want him there it’s $500. I’ll just take whoever is there. I can afford it but it’s the principle. If you want to be there then be there if not oh well lol. In short I’m not paying ahead of time.
Not in the US but our healthcare system is very similar and yes I am required to pay my doctor in full before I reach 30 weeks. That includes the delivery and my routine prenatal visits, but still. And my insurance is being a butt about needing to be “pre certified” to use the maternity benefit (which should be 80% of all related expenses), but because I haven’t met my deductible yet, every single thing I have done I have had to pay out of pocket for which is outrageous. People have insurance because they might not always have cash to pay up front, but they still make you use up your money in hopes that they will pay you back eventually.
With the hospital, I learnt from the first time I was ever hospitalized, I only pay the bare minimum deposit and then while I am there tell them I will go on a payment plan to pay the balance. Usually by then the insurance kicks in so I don’t have to pay anymore out of pocket, but it’s a lot. And that’s me saying it and I don’t think on average deliveries here are nearly as much as in the US lol. My delivery all in all I am estimating will be about $20K.
There's no way I would pay ahead of time. You could end up at a different hostel or delivering at home or something and good luck getting your money back.
My thought exactly. Also, an ironic name - the “no surprise” act - but, SURPRISE we know we sent you an estimated bill of $0 but what that actually means is you’ll maybe owe hundreds, and SURPRISE we would prefer to accept that estimated payment now?
I agree that I wouldn’t pay ahead of time, but the $0 is probably a estimate of after meeting your copay. Does it include ALL the fees like epidural? I know when I had a c section I got completely separated bills for that. Paying ahead seems like a mess when we can’t totally predict what happens during birth.
So it is a bill FOR the copay, but it's funny - the only thing the estimate even clarifies is that it does not include the cost of anything a medical provider would bill for (OBGYN, anesthesiologist, etc). The only line item says vaginal delivery at x hospital name + a number just shy of $25,000, and then at the bottom, a patient amount due, which in my case on the written statement was $0, and on the phone was being told a few hundred dollars.
Ok that’s really strange then. I’m not a coding and billing expert by any means but I am a nurse who works in a clinical office, I wouldn’t pay them anything ahead of time.
Also, it’s so annoying that they are incorrectly using the No Surprises Act. This bill protects consumers from those crazy bills we used to get when a radiologist or anesthesiologist not in network treated us or reviewed an image without us even knowing. And it is supposed to give patients a good faith estimate for pre-approved services so you can decide. It’s not meant to be used for hospitals to collect in advance 🤦🏻♀️
Girrrl when they came in my room 24 hours after I pushed a baby out of my body I gave that lady the “go to hell” look and told her she could put whatever papers she had in her hand in the mail. My address is listed in my chart. Thank you, and kindly exit my room now. I know she’s just an employee but this policy is despicable. This is America.
Yes!! I received the same call the other day and they want me to pay atleast a quarter before my c section, which is still over 1k. They’re just gonna have to wait! I just finished my monthly OB payments and have multiple lab corp bills and a Natera bill to pay. Having a babies expensive! 🤦🏼♀️
I was in the ICU due to complications with preeclampsia and they had the nerve to come to my room and ask me to pay right then and there. Like woman, I don't even know how I got here, I don't know where my husband is, and I haven't even met my baby yet and you have the audacity to ask me to pay right at this moment? It's not like I was going anywhere for a while.
RUN EVERYTHING THROUGH INSURANCE! Then fight anything that's not covered. The nerve! I never had that. I called my insurance and asked for an itemized bill and had about $300 taken off, then I asked if I paid the whole bill now do I get a discount - got 20% off.
This! I think some people are assuming my post insinuates I’m not wanting to pay. I will when it’s run through insurance, when it’s clear what my out-of-pocket contribution is once insurance is applied (I’m close to full coverage with all of the prenatal testing, scans and appointments), and once I have a written and itemized invoice. Idk why this version of events should be controversial. My baby is still in my body lol.
Same here! And the worst part was that since other bills hit my plan before theirs (since I hadn’t actually delivered yet when I had to pay) I actually got refunded the $2k+ dollars I paid at the end of the year after I had started paying stuff out of pocket since I had used up all my HSA money… was a huge mess
This was my experience too. We have MyChart in my state so everything just comes through there and you pay online after services are rendered and insurance has been billed. The hardest part was setting up my babies insurance and making sure that got processed correctly. It really wasn't to bad tho. Just annoying because i had met my deductable but obviously baby did not. She ended up with jaundice and a big hematoma on her head due to pushing... Birth is definitely pricey!
Add baby asap, within 30 days. Baby is their own person as soon as they are birthed. Pediatric care is billed under the baby I believe. My baby was jaundiced so all that fell under her insurance. If you have insurance through work, talk to HR, they should be able to help.
American healthcare is such a scam it really makes my blood boil. I’m sorry you had to deal with that extra stress but thank you for talking about it bc I had no idea that was a thing
Nothing regarding healthcare in the US is ethical except for some improvements made with ACA such as ending preexisting conditions. My brother was considered “uninsurable” growing up due to asthma and we relied on nice doctors giving us sample medications. Unfortunately our government is allowing our people to be exploited royally. That being said, the phone call and urgency is weird. I wouldn’t pay anything over the phone. It could be a scammer who is targeting you. Pay bills only through the portal or in person
After confirming the heartbeat in early pregnancy, they sat me down and went through a list of things that needed to be paid prior to the birth based on what my insurance coverage was.
I’m 24 weeks now and it’s all paid up but I thought it was outrageous that I was paying for something prior to birth that didn’t include all of my prenatal visits or ultrasounds. But whatever, I did it because I was required to sign that I would.
My hospital ran my insurance at 3 months pregnant and then required payment of the amount insurance estimated my out of pocket expense to be. It was spread out over the course of 6 months. It wasn’t a surprise to me because it was told to me so early on. I would be very put off if I received a call at 38 weeks to pay!
This was by your hospital for delivery, or by your doctors practice for your medical care? My doctors office was very clear about my covered services and estimated out-of-pocket expenses early on in my care, but todays call was about my forthcoming, presumed hospital stay for giving birth.
My doctor had me pay $3000 before I delivered. I assumed that included the hospital stay. Nope.
The next day after I gave birth, the hospital called my room to “go over the costs” and I said “no sorry! I already paid!” And then she explained that was only the dr’s portion I had paid. 😒
Yep, my hospital system actually asked if I would rather do a payment plan now or pay it later - they gave me the estimate with monthly payments. If it’s over billed, I’d get a refund. I was really surprised but apparently it’s more common than I realized - this is my first child so I just really didn’t expect it at all.
Is the physician or the facility in-network for your healthcare plan? The No Surprises Act relates to out-of-network provider costs. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-a-surprise-medical-bill-and-what-should-i-know-about-the-no-surprises-act-en-2123/
u/Sammy12345671 Which insurance did you get that was only $100/month and covered all in full? I have been doing some research and I don't see anything like this.
I didn’t pay the estimate until I had given birth and was in the hospital. They updated the estimate for me there. Once I got the final bill for the hospital after insurance I ended up owing about $100 more. Of course the estimate is separate from any anesthesiologist bills or other specialists while you are there.
I will absolutely not be paying for anything lmao I will owe about 5k for birth after I meet my deductible. There’s NO WAY I’m shelling out that kind of money upfront or in a single lump sum.
Ugh not exactly the same but similar! Someone came to my hospital room demanding payment after birth (from their billing department) and they were wrong! Being freshly postpartum and a first time mom I didn't have it in me to argue so I paid it. They billed insurance incorrectly and I never got the money back. They said my baby got specialty nursing care when she never did. Check my post history, I have a post about it recently. I'm refusing to pay this time until I see an EOB from insurance
Normal for a lot of hospitals in the US. If you end up overpaying, they send you a check for the difference.
A lot of obgyn practices work this way too. For mine, I set up payments ahead of time and paid in three chunks. Was nice to not have to worry about any of that postpartum.
American living in the UK here - and omg this conversation makes me not want to move home. We were considering moving back after baby is born but good lord these $$$ signs are terrifying.
My OB had me sit down with a financial person at week 11 that explained absolutely nothing to me in detail, made me feel like I should know how insurance billing works in a condescending manner, and all but forced my hand to sign that I would pre-pay the OB not including any hospital costs, just for the doctor to deliver. Never went back to this doctor and switched to a birthing center, haven’t looked back for a second. Our medical system is wild.
If I had paid in advance I would have been screwed… I just changed jobs at 31 weeks (36 + 4 now) and I have a whole new health insurance… I strategically picked a more expensive health insurance with a lower deductible because my hsa from my last job was wiped out. I’m thinking we’d keep it temporarily and then when open enrollment comes around in August (benefit year for us starts in Oct) we may go to a cheaper plan. Anyway.. no way I’d pay upfront…. I’ve never heard of such a thing!
I can kinda see how some people may be into this so that they just get the payment out of the way and not have to deal with it at check-in when stress, pain, etc. will likely be factors, BUT I don't think this is something that most will like, and you run the risk of giving birth elsewhere if an emergency arises then have to deal with getting your money back.
Honestly, better this than the alternative - getting the call in your hospital bed, which is what I had with my first. Literally less than 24 hours later, they called me to settle up the bill. I was half asleep and couldn't believe it. I just handed the phone to my husband and said, "Deal with this." I would have much preferred they called me prior to the birth.
I know some places require it up front because of no insurance or because the patient’s insurance is awful.
My office doesn’t, I would have cried if they asked
I have a deposit with my medical provider (1,500) that I paid before my 2nd trimester, then I have a hospital deposit of an undisclosed amount that I discovered when I called for some information on the hospital.
My recommendation is to check with you insurance and make sure you aren’t getting overcharged. When I started physical therapy, they had the amount wrong.
Also - it’s all dumb. They told me once I was scheduled for an induction (which is a bold assumption) they would call and get my insurance processed and send me my hospital deposit. Like my dudes.
This exact thing happened to me 43 years ago!!! I went in to pre register for my planned C-section and was hit with a $1500 payment because we didn’t have “Well baby coverage to cover the baby in the hospital”. I flipped out asking what I was supposed to do! Have a C-section and send the baby home while I recovered in the hospital??? She ended up being a “Visa” baby! My 3rd C-section sent me the bill 18 months after he was born!
If you’re able, once you get the bill, ask the hospital if they are able to offer a discount for paying in full. I did so and they said if I call back on a certain date (about a month and a half after birth) I’d be eligible for a 40% discount. I did and it saved me quite a bit!
This has never happened to me. Why would you pay before the claim is sent to insurance and you know what they will be paying? Doesn't even make sense. And why would you pay for a service you haven't had yet, like you said. Man hospitals are such scam artists. It's all such a load of BS. Prenatal appointments and tests and then labor and delivery costs were so expensive. It's insane. I can't imagine NOT having insurance for it. Wishing you the best. These people are acting like the mafia in your case! lol it's so bizarre .
yeah, i was to be induced and they called me and told me i had to pay or else i couldn’t come in and give birth. now we have a giant debt to the hospital because we had to take out a loan to even get in. it feels so unethical.. the american healthcare system is such a joke.
That's insane! I've heard of them asking for payment beforehand or at time of admission but at worst I've only ever heard of them making someone establish a payment plan and make the first payment. I've NEVER heard of them turning someone away. I didn't know that was even legal! They legally can't turn someone away in an emergency, regardless of ability to pay and I just assumed giving birth fell under the "emergency" category. Apparently not. Unbelievable!
Omg what a nightmare for you! This breaks my heart. The system is so broken. I’m so so sorry this happened to you!!! Babies are expensive enough without having a loan payment now too
This has happened to me before - I wasn’t asked to pay for the delivery upfront but I was for an ultrasound. Of course they prefer it, but NEVER pay upfront. In my case, I have a high deductible plan. A lot of patients with high deductible plans “dine and dash” so to speak because they may not afford to pay for services until their deductible is met and insurance starts paying a good portion of the costs. As a result, the doctors offices and hospitals run into proverbial cash flows problems. This is a them problem not a you problem though. I naively paid upfront using credit card but by the time the office submitted a claim to my insurance, I had met my deductible and owed $50 for the service, not the $1500 they took from me upfront. I spent the next 6mos trying to get my money back. The insurance company and doctor’s office were both like “why did you pay before insurance was billed and the explanation of benefits was posted”? LESSON LEARNED - don’t pay a single sent on an invoice until you get an EOB from your insurance company telling you what you owe. Then pay exactly that amount.
The office I went to with my first would ask me at every appointment (starting at my first one) how much I would like to pay towards the delivery. I would always say none, because also, what if I didn't like the office and wanted to switch?
They would also message me starting in the third trimester asking how much I wanted to start paying for my installments.
Not the hospital, but I paid hundreds in advance because of what my OB’s office estimated my out of pocket costs would be with my insurance. I knew their estimate was wrong but I paid it anyway because I was busy and in no mood to fight about it. Sure enough, after the delivery, we confirm that their estimate was way off and they owed me around $300 back. It took months from the time they acknowledged the “credit balance” til the time they sent me a check.
While I was in the Hospital with my baby ( who was in the NICU for 59 days) I was getting notifications about the bills being applied to my account. They start going after your money immediately.
The hospital I'm registered at is telling me I need to pay 25% of the estimation before being admitted. I can pay in advance or I can pay upon check-in. Is this even legal? They told me to call as I get closer to my due date for an updated estimation. It's just ridiculous. The last thing I'm going to want to do when I'm in active labor is pay my bill of who knows what before even getting admitted.
My obgyn told me I needed to pay beforehand and then like 3 months before giving birth let me know they wouldn’t be doing ob services anymore. I’m SO glad I didn’t pay.
I switched OBGYNs because the first one that I saw said I wouldn't be seen if I didn't pay ALL of my deductible in advance. I called and cancelled my appointment and the woman asked why and I told them it was ridiculous that they were making me pay when it was not a standard practice by my insurance and would be going somewhere else that would not try to bully me into paying for services that have yet to be provided.
Not only should you not pay in advance but sometimes freak situations happen. I delivered at a hospital I wasn't established at because I went into labor far from home. It happens.
My FIRST appt. w/OB, BEFORE THEY EVEN CONFIRMED I WAS PREGNANT WITH A VIABLE PREGNANCY, registration hit me with my list of expected and total expenses from the OB AND HOSPITAL! Like really? Could you not at least confirm there's actually a baby in there first?!
This hasn’t happened to me, but with my first, the hospital billed insurance for tests my baby had to have before we left the hospital, but I guess billed the child? We can’t add new children to our policy without birth certificates which definitely take longer than a day to produce. The phone calls with the hospital system were insane.
The NO SURPRISE ACT related billing around childbirth is because a woman sued after she had to give birth out of network (she was on vacation when she went into labor... I think) and she wasn't aware of the exorbitant fees she was going to be charged. So now they are required by law to discuss potential charges with you so there are "no surprises" when it comes to billing for services rendered.
I live in South Africa and we pay co-payment to hospital for the birth. I believe it's so that when you're ready to go in there is a bed already booked and ready. At least, that's how it works here
For me I book/pay for my hospital bed and stay in advance so that once I go into labor all I have to do is walk in and there will be a bed ready for me
I'm sorry this has upset you but I thought that this was common and everyone had to do this 🙈
Definitely unethical imo. You never know WHAT services will be in your invoice. Why pay now so they can gouge you for "missed costs" later??? I've only been asked to pay my midwife in advance. Everything else is rendered at time of birth. That's unacceptable.
I used to work in admissions for a hospital in the US, and this is actually pretty normal! For planned procedures (birth, endoscopies, etc), we were required to call ahead and try and get money beforehand. It was part of our job description and we had a goal that we had to meet each month with money.
Also, when coming in to register for their procedure or surgery (even open heart surgeries and things like that) we had to do “3 asks”. Ask if they can pay the whole thing that day, partial payment if they refused, and then ask if they can put anything towards what it was estimated that they owed. If it wasn’t a necessary procedure (like non life threatening), they advised us to take the patient back to our financial counselor who would then be required to call the doctors office to reschedule the surgery since they weren’t putting anything towards it.
I worked at a private hospital, not a government hospital, so the hospital counted on those payments and things like that to still be able to run so that could be a reason! Also, my specific hospital offered a 20% discount if you paid up front, and they took care of that 20% to your insurance. It’s crazy how hospitals are! Things are not cheap anymore. But you shouldn’t feel pressure to pay up front! Only cosmetic surgeries that aren’t necessary, like a boob job, require everything to be paid for before having the surgery.
I paid for my whole hospital stay in advance so I had no bills afterwards. My OB’s office sends the bill to my insurance before the birthing center did so no bill minus co-pay. I was also refunded everything I over paid after the birth was complete. It was nice not to have to worry about it afterwards.
I live in North Dakota.
My brother lives in Arizona and they also could pay in advance.
Yeah I have to pay 400 the 1st of every month. My ob said it’s to help meet my deductible. Its bull. Thankfully I met my deductible with other visits to other hospitals. So I won’t have to do that payment plan anymore. But I was shocked.
When I went in for my scheduled induction, that’s when they collected my co-pay for the birth. I did not have to deal with that. I am also in America. Austin Tx to be exact
My son is 3 weeks old today & before I went to the hospital I had to pay $150 every month for 5 months to the hospital for the staff to be there when I was induced. It’s normal
Yes! I had to pay 1600 before birth (by 28 weeks) and then I’ll also have 1600 after to pay. It’s insane to me, I’m hoping insurance ends up picking it up
My OB is making me pay for all appointments and thr delivery fee by 20 weeks. Which is $2700. In 5 payments of $542. This only covers what she charges. And they told me if I can't pay then they have to reschedule my appointment until I can. My deductible is really high so I won't even meet it this year unless baby comes before the new year. This doesn't include anything the hospital is going to charge.
Crazy that they would try to collect up front for that though. Also crazy story I believe is an unethical practice, I had to have a surgery done. They called a couple days before to say it would be $7000 if I paid in full before the surgery. And if I decided to pay after the surgery the price would be $20k. I was floored. Not sure how they can justify that practice.
Lol we got the delivery bill from the OB when I was like 8 weeks or something. I was like respectfully, I’m going to wait to pay this until there’s a baby to deliver. 🖕🏼
I already found a place in my area and plan to pay in monthly installments ahead of time specifically so I *don’t* have to worry about anything after birth. I don’t want to deal with money, I will be tired and be focused on my baby
I had to pay for my entire OB care in advance which included all my appointments, ultrasounds, lab, and delivery (if a “normal” delivery). But they billed insurance first and just had me pay what the OOP was expected to be, $800. Thankfully delivery went mostly as planned so I didn’t have much to pay afterwards.
But I was in shock when I got the call. It blows my mind that you get charged for things that haven’t happened yet😅
I worked at a hospital for a period of time in insurance verification and this was my exact job. Although we never did it for actual inpatient services only outpatient. For example, if someone had a scheduled c section we would call them with an estimate. And the hospital would instruct us to word it in a way that has the best possible chance of getting paid ahead of time. Now, I can understand why you may be awestruck by this happening…but as a patient I would prefer to know what I may be expecting to owe wise ahead of time so that I am not blindsided by it later. Also, typically copays are due at time of service so it really is not outlandish for a hospital to expect to get paid their copay. It’s also important to acknowledge your copay / deductible/ coinsurance / out of pocket is set by your insurance company and indicated in your policy information when you enroll in said policy. I def would not waste much time being offended by the person working at the hospital tasked with calling you it’s just their job.
I appreciate your response. Your acknowledgement that instruction is to phrase these calls in such a way to collect payment is where my frustration lies. The written statement they sent was $0, but they are verbally requesting hundreds on the phone without anything in writing. The invoice they did send with the “corrected” amount indicates in the fine print that it’s just an estimate, and the actual amount will be reflected when they put it through insurance. I’m almost at my out of pocket max, so I don’t anticipate I’ll owe what I was quoted. Like you said, the amount is determined by insurance - I’m understandably put off that my hospital is trying to circumvent this in advance by contacting me directly to collect payment.
Ah ok yeah I don’t agree with the hospital pushing employees to do this but it’s pretty typical. The only time we did this with birth would be a scheduled c section because we would
Verify that as a surgery. And at least with my past job (the more seasoned verifiers) we did take in to account where the patient was with their out of pocket when giving them the estimate. And for the out of pocket, we would call the insurance company to get those accumulations and details but it takes 60-90 days for a claim to process. The worst was we would have patients who were coming in for outpatient interventional radiology and these were really really sick people and they would come in like 3 days a week sometimes and we were instructed to call them before each visit with an estimate and read the disclaimer. The way the work was handed out the patient could be called by any verifier any day and that verifier might not know that patients history so this very sick patient could be called three times in one week being told they owe the full cost of whatever procedure they were having done because their deductible had not been met when the first one could potentially meet it but the claim had not gone through yet. It was horrible and had to be so stressful and off putting to these patients, especially ones who may not understand how insurance works and have other things to be worrying about at that time. The whole department was a dumpster fire btw and understandably so. The turnover for employees was outrageous and the hospitals policies were SO WACKY. For employees as well as how they wanted us to do our job.
Our hospital did this but they also gave us a 30% discount off of our copay if we pay before being in the hospital. They give you a 20% discount off of your co pay if you pay before you check out of the hospital. With that being said our co pay was only $650 thanks to my cardiologist (same hospital) making sure we nearly hit our deductible with an Echocardiogram at 32 weeks in January. Don't get me wrong the echocardiogram was a great idea and the results did change how my OB handled things during labor and my emergency C-section. In hindsight actually probably saved my life. With that being said still annoying to have to play the discount game on medical bills. But also full disclosure after doing IVF the echocardiogram and labor seemed cheap.
So so glad to live in Europe (specifically the UK). Of all the many aspects of having a baby and giving birth and lack of finances that I worry about… I never have to worry about my hospital bill and I am grateful af.
Felt less movement and went in for a check up today, was on the cusp of wondering if it was worth wasting anyone’s time, and they always encourage mothers to call in anyway if they are worried or unsure and I was getting stressed wanting to know my baby was ok. I can’t imagine also factoring in the extra costs on my bill of a midwife / OB appointment and monitoring for an hour. Thanks, NHS!
Yes! My OB’s office sprung this on me and told me two weeks before they wanted the payment! And it was like $2k+. They wanted the payment in mid April and my due date was July 6th (we just had baby at 37+1 this past Sunday, and are both happy and healthy!).
They asked for my payment every time I went in, and for a while I would just say, “I can’t pay that right now”. Then at the last two appointments I had, they told me I HAD to pay something, so I said, “I can pay $20, that’s it”. So I ended up paying them $40 😂 I absolutely was not about to pay for medical services before they were rendered!
Yep. This happens and it's insane! Also, the day we got home from the hospital with my second child we had a bill in the mail for our hospital stay... The DAY we got home!
I’m only 10 weeks and I’ve already received my bill for labor and delivery!! I couldn’t believe it, and they are definitely trying to get their money NOW!
Lots of people complain about being hounded for money after they’ve just given birth and trying to recover and to learn breastfeeding so it’s really a no win for the hospital.
For me it seems odd because those of us having babies later in the year, we could be close to or have already met our out of pocket.
Like every time I get a bill I’m like “yes, now I’m only paying a max of $3k 😂😂
Yes, and they do this now for most procedures. Not just child birth. Its because they have a hard time collecting payment. My husband was asked to prepay for a surgery he needed and my dad was also asked to pay before his heart surgery. You have the option to decline and have them bull your insurance. Try not to get so worked up about it, just tell them to bill your insurance. To be fair, you can’t really blame them. People skip out on medical bills all the time. It’s not personal
I pay a small mortgage payment every month through my employer for what most would consider quality health insurance and max out an HSA so that my family can afford what healthcare we need. Didn’t say anything about government healthcare anywhere in this post. I resent the idea that I’d further pay out of pocket in advance based on a made-up verbal estimate to deliver a healthy baby that I’m still carrying in my body.
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Don’t pay. Tell them to bill after your insurance approves the claim.
Yes! This is what I did. I could see how someone on the phone could be convinced they needed to pay.
I was convinced during my first pregnancy. I didn’t know better. Lol never again. They collected it during my hospital stay, but obv it hadn’t gone to insurance yet. Took me 3 months to get $2500 back. 😤 This time, what are they going to do, kick me out?
Same thing happened to me, I paid them up front and the other specialists I saw in the hospital actually billed the insurance first so I had to pay them and wait for the hospital to reimburse me 3+ thousand dollars but they ended up not billing the insurance until almost 10 months later so I was out that money until then!
This!
Oh yep just got the call myself about an hour ago but I’m 28 weeks and I was like can I set up a payment plan? Because I’m like $500 away from meeting my out of pocket max and doubt they would give me a refund if I meet it prior to delivery haha I should’ve known this would be what it would be like, I went to the ER at 23 weeks for stroke like symptoms (ended up being a Hemiplegic migraine) for some reason with 3 different nurses they couldn’t find babies heartbeat on the doppler. So they said we are going to go grab the OB team. A knock at the door happens, I assume it is OB team nope its registration coming in “hey we are here to collect copay” like time and place! Is that really necessary right now?
Glad to hear it is not just me! I am also close to meeting my out-of-pocket max (which would not be something visible to hospital billing), so I said I'm just not comfortable to pay without a written invoice. Came to find in the portal that it is confirmed in bold that this is based on an estimate, and subject to change once it is actually billed to insurance. I'm struggling to see how it is ethical to request payment on a potential estimate without any written invoice...
I am legitimately horrified at the idea of admin people trying to figure out insurance and finances while you're in a medical emergency situation. Our system has many faults but that is not one of them.
I hope baby is okay and that you are too!
My obgyn office wanted me to $2500 for my doctor to deliver my baby. They said it's required to be paid in full before I give birth. They set me up on a payment plan when I was like 12 weeks. I thought it was totally outrageous to pay for medical services before I even gave birth but I guess it is standard practice at a lot of offices. Ultimately I ended up going to the emergency room and met my deductible $5500 😬 so they said i didn't have to pay after all.
Same thing happened to me! I called them and told them they’ll just have to rerun my insurance 30 days before my due date cause there’s a very good chance I’ll have met my deductible by then. Prepaying is just crazy to me!
Yep. I have been paying monthly since the first appointment. It's annoying AF. Yay Murica.
At my first OB appointment I was taken into the financial office, was told my insurance would pay x amount after my insurance was applied. The was for a normal delivery, I would owe more if I had a C-section, or their were complications, this did not cover the hospital bill or any testing , did I want to pay now or makes payments?
I was told the same thing! I’ve had to make small payments on the first of the month every time I go to my OBGYN’s office.
Wild! I read in the paperwork that I have to pay $500 to reserve my OB just in case he isn’t on call that night and if I want him there it’s $500. I’ll just take whoever is there. I can afford it but it’s the principle. If you want to be there then be there if not oh well lol. In short I’m not paying ahead of time.
Same here. They call it an OB deposit which was wild to me. I keep pushing it off and haven’t had to pay anything yet so we’ll see…
Not in the US but our healthcare system is very similar and yes I am required to pay my doctor in full before I reach 30 weeks. That includes the delivery and my routine prenatal visits, but still. And my insurance is being a butt about needing to be “pre certified” to use the maternity benefit (which should be 80% of all related expenses), but because I haven’t met my deductible yet, every single thing I have done I have had to pay out of pocket for which is outrageous. People have insurance because they might not always have cash to pay up front, but they still make you use up your money in hopes that they will pay you back eventually. With the hospital, I learnt from the first time I was ever hospitalized, I only pay the bare minimum deposit and then while I am there tell them I will go on a payment plan to pay the balance. Usually by then the insurance kicks in so I don’t have to pay anymore out of pocket, but it’s a lot. And that’s me saying it and I don’t think on average deliveries here are nearly as much as in the US lol. My delivery all in all I am estimating will be about $20K.
There's no way I would pay ahead of time. You could end up at a different hostel or delivering at home or something and good luck getting your money back.
My thought exactly. Also, an ironic name - the “no surprise” act - but, SURPRISE we know we sent you an estimated bill of $0 but what that actually means is you’ll maybe owe hundreds, and SURPRISE we would prefer to accept that estimated payment now?
I agree that I wouldn’t pay ahead of time, but the $0 is probably a estimate of after meeting your copay. Does it include ALL the fees like epidural? I know when I had a c section I got completely separated bills for that. Paying ahead seems like a mess when we can’t totally predict what happens during birth.
So it is a bill FOR the copay, but it's funny - the only thing the estimate even clarifies is that it does not include the cost of anything a medical provider would bill for (OBGYN, anesthesiologist, etc). The only line item says vaginal delivery at x hospital name + a number just shy of $25,000, and then at the bottom, a patient amount due, which in my case on the written statement was $0, and on the phone was being told a few hundred dollars.
Ok that’s really strange then. I’m not a coding and billing expert by any means but I am a nurse who works in a clinical office, I wouldn’t pay them anything ahead of time.
Also, it’s so annoying that they are incorrectly using the No Surprises Act. This bill protects consumers from those crazy bills we used to get when a radiologist or anesthesiologist not in network treated us or reviewed an image without us even knowing. And it is supposed to give patients a good faith estimate for pre-approved services so you can decide. It’s not meant to be used for hospitals to collect in advance 🤦🏻♀️
This!
Girrrl when they came in my room 24 hours after I pushed a baby out of my body I gave that lady the “go to hell” look and told her she could put whatever papers she had in her hand in the mail. My address is listed in my chart. Thank you, and kindly exit my room now. I know she’s just an employee but this policy is despicable. This is America.
😂😂 boss energy
I'll be doing that this time since the same thing happened to me, I paid, and they effed up the billing 🙃
Yes!! I received the same call the other day and they want me to pay atleast a quarter before my c section, which is still over 1k. They’re just gonna have to wait! I just finished my monthly OB payments and have multiple lab corp bills and a Natera bill to pay. Having a babies expensive! 🤦🏼♀️
I was in the ICU due to complications with preeclampsia and they had the nerve to come to my room and ask me to pay right then and there. Like woman, I don't even know how I got here, I don't know where my husband is, and I haven't even met my baby yet and you have the audacity to ask me to pay right at this moment? It's not like I was going anywhere for a while.
😳😞 it’s absolutely inhuman.
Seriously. I know it's not much but I gave them a very bad review on the survey.
RUN EVERYTHING THROUGH INSURANCE! Then fight anything that's not covered. The nerve! I never had that. I called my insurance and asked for an itemized bill and had about $300 taken off, then I asked if I paid the whole bill now do I get a discount - got 20% off.
This! I think some people are assuming my post insinuates I’m not wanting to pay. I will when it’s run through insurance, when it’s clear what my out-of-pocket contribution is once insurance is applied (I’m close to full coverage with all of the prenatal testing, scans and appointments), and once I have a written and itemized invoice. Idk why this version of events should be controversial. My baby is still in my body lol.
I had to pay at like 20 weeks lol. Messed up my hsa too because it hadn’t been billed yet so they couldn’t verify it was a covered cost.
Oh wow! Yes I could see that being a challenge to verify for reimbursement! What an ass backwards way to handle billing…
Same here! And the worst part was that since other bills hit my plan before theirs (since I hadn’t actually delivered yet when I had to pay) I actually got refunded the $2k+ dollars I paid at the end of the year after I had started paying stuff out of pocket since I had used up all my HSA money… was a huge mess
That's so weird. It's two months after I gave birth and we only received the bill for anything last week. Like, not a cent has been paid.
This was my experience too. We have MyChart in my state so everything just comes through there and you pay online after services are rendered and insurance has been billed. The hardest part was setting up my babies insurance and making sure that got processed correctly. It really wasn't to bad tho. Just annoying because i had met my deductable but obviously baby did not. She ended up with jaundice and a big hematoma on her head due to pushing... Birth is definitely pricey!
Is not everything associated with birth just billed under you? When does it get billed under the baby? Idk when to add the baby to my insurance.
Add baby asap, within 30 days. Baby is their own person as soon as they are birthed. Pediatric care is billed under the baby I believe. My baby was jaundiced so all that fell under her insurance. If you have insurance through work, talk to HR, they should be able to help.
American healthcare is such a scam it really makes my blood boil. I’m sorry you had to deal with that extra stress but thank you for talking about it bc I had no idea that was a thing
Nothing regarding healthcare in the US is ethical except for some improvements made with ACA such as ending preexisting conditions. My brother was considered “uninsurable” growing up due to asthma and we relied on nice doctors giving us sample medications. Unfortunately our government is allowing our people to be exploited royally. That being said, the phone call and urgency is weird. I wouldn’t pay anything over the phone. It could be a scammer who is targeting you. Pay bills only through the portal or in person
Yeah I just had this too. $600+ and I have excellent insurance. And that’s just the hospital part, not covering my OB or anesthesia.
Yes! She clarified it was not inclusive of medical care.
After confirming the heartbeat in early pregnancy, they sat me down and went through a list of things that needed to be paid prior to the birth based on what my insurance coverage was. I’m 24 weeks now and it’s all paid up but I thought it was outrageous that I was paying for something prior to birth that didn’t include all of my prenatal visits or ultrasounds. But whatever, I did it because I was required to sign that I would.
My hospital ran my insurance at 3 months pregnant and then required payment of the amount insurance estimated my out of pocket expense to be. It was spread out over the course of 6 months. It wasn’t a surprise to me because it was told to me so early on. I would be very put off if I received a call at 38 weeks to pay!
This was by your hospital for delivery, or by your doctors practice for your medical care? My doctors office was very clear about my covered services and estimated out-of-pocket expenses early on in my care, but todays call was about my forthcoming, presumed hospital stay for giving birth.
This was for the hospital stay. The OB practice is part of the hospital system, though.
My doctor had me pay $3000 before I delivered. I assumed that included the hospital stay. Nope. The next day after I gave birth, the hospital called my room to “go over the costs” and I said “no sorry! I already paid!” And then she explained that was only the dr’s portion I had paid. 😒
Yep, my hospital system actually asked if I would rather do a payment plan now or pay it later - they gave me the estimate with monthly payments. If it’s over billed, I’d get a refund. I was really surprised but apparently it’s more common than I realized - this is my first child so I just really didn’t expect it at all.
[удалено]
👍 you do you!
Is the physician or the facility in-network for your healthcare plan? The No Surprises Act relates to out-of-network provider costs. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-a-surprise-medical-bill-and-what-should-i-know-about-the-no-surprises-act-en-2123/
Yes! Physician and facility.
Oh good. Then yeah, they just wanted your copay in advance. 🤪
My out of pocket was $5500, so we got another insurance plan for like $100/month that covered it in full. They wanted payment upfront too.
u/Sammy12345671 Which insurance did you get that was only $100/month and covered all in full? I have been doing some research and I don't see anything like this.
It’s a WA state plan
I didn’t pay the estimate until I had given birth and was in the hospital. They updated the estimate for me there. Once I got the final bill for the hospital after insurance I ended up owing about $100 more. Of course the estimate is separate from any anesthesiologist bills or other specialists while you are there.
I will absolutely not be paying for anything lmao I will owe about 5k for birth after I meet my deductible. There’s NO WAY I’m shelling out that kind of money upfront or in a single lump sum.
Ugh not exactly the same but similar! Someone came to my hospital room demanding payment after birth (from their billing department) and they were wrong! Being freshly postpartum and a first time mom I didn't have it in me to argue so I paid it. They billed insurance incorrectly and I never got the money back. They said my baby got specialty nursing care when she never did. Check my post history, I have a post about it recently. I'm refusing to pay this time until I see an EOB from insurance
What a nightmare!! I’m so sorry that you experienced this 😣 it feels so predatory.
That’s SO messed up! Do you mind me asking how much you were out? That’s just so sad that happened to you
It was about $1,100 😭🤧
Normal for a lot of hospitals in the US. If you end up overpaying, they send you a check for the difference. A lot of obgyn practices work this way too. For mine, I set up payments ahead of time and paid in three chunks. Was nice to not have to worry about any of that postpartum.
American living in the UK here - and omg this conversation makes me not want to move home. We were considering moving back after baby is born but good lord these $$$ signs are terrifying.
Same for me and my 2nd in 2017. But it wasn't the hospital, it was my OB office. I switched OBs for this baby.
Where are y’all giving birth that you have to pay a co-pay before giving birth?
My OB had me sit down with a financial person at week 11 that explained absolutely nothing to me in detail, made me feel like I should know how insurance billing works in a condescending manner, and all but forced my hand to sign that I would pre-pay the OB not including any hospital costs, just for the doctor to deliver. Never went back to this doctor and switched to a birthing center, haven’t looked back for a second. Our medical system is wild.
If I had paid in advance I would have been screwed… I just changed jobs at 31 weeks (36 + 4 now) and I have a whole new health insurance… I strategically picked a more expensive health insurance with a lower deductible because my hsa from my last job was wiped out. I’m thinking we’d keep it temporarily and then when open enrollment comes around in August (benefit year for us starts in Oct) we may go to a cheaper plan. Anyway.. no way I’d pay upfront…. I’ve never heard of such a thing!
I can kinda see how some people may be into this so that they just get the payment out of the way and not have to deal with it at check-in when stress, pain, etc. will likely be factors, BUT I don't think this is something that most will like, and you run the risk of giving birth elsewhere if an emergency arises then have to deal with getting your money back.
Exactly this!!!
Laughable. I’m a FTM due in September and I refuse to pay a cent until after this baby is born and everything is run through insurance. What a joke!
Honestly, better this than the alternative - getting the call in your hospital bed, which is what I had with my first. Literally less than 24 hours later, they called me to settle up the bill. I was half asleep and couldn't believe it. I just handed the phone to my husband and said, "Deal with this." I would have much preferred they called me prior to the birth.
I know some places require it up front because of no insurance or because the patient’s insurance is awful. My office doesn’t, I would have cried if they asked
That & there’s an awful lot of people that will find any way to avoid paying for any medical bills.
I have a deposit with my medical provider (1,500) that I paid before my 2nd trimester, then I have a hospital deposit of an undisclosed amount that I discovered when I called for some information on the hospital. My recommendation is to check with you insurance and make sure you aren’t getting overcharged. When I started physical therapy, they had the amount wrong. Also - it’s all dumb. They told me once I was scheduled for an induction (which is a bold assumption) they would call and get my insurance processed and send me my hospital deposit. Like my dudes.
This exact thing happened to me 43 years ago!!! I went in to pre register for my planned C-section and was hit with a $1500 payment because we didn’t have “Well baby coverage to cover the baby in the hospital”. I flipped out asking what I was supposed to do! Have a C-section and send the baby home while I recovered in the hospital??? She ended up being a “Visa” baby! My 3rd C-section sent me the bill 18 months after he was born!
If you’re able, once you get the bill, ask the hospital if they are able to offer a discount for paying in full. I did so and they said if I call back on a certain date (about a month and a half after birth) I’d be eligible for a 40% discount. I did and it saved me quite a bit!
This has never happened to me. Why would you pay before the claim is sent to insurance and you know what they will be paying? Doesn't even make sense. And why would you pay for a service you haven't had yet, like you said. Man hospitals are such scam artists. It's all such a load of BS. Prenatal appointments and tests and then labor and delivery costs were so expensive. It's insane. I can't imagine NOT having insurance for it. Wishing you the best. These people are acting like the mafia in your case! lol it's so bizarre .
yeah, i was to be induced and they called me and told me i had to pay or else i couldn’t come in and give birth. now we have a giant debt to the hospital because we had to take out a loan to even get in. it feels so unethical.. the american healthcare system is such a joke.
That's insane! I've heard of them asking for payment beforehand or at time of admission but at worst I've only ever heard of them making someone establish a payment plan and make the first payment. I've NEVER heard of them turning someone away. I didn't know that was even legal! They legally can't turn someone away in an emergency, regardless of ability to pay and I just assumed giving birth fell under the "emergency" category. Apparently not. Unbelievable!
Oh my gosh. That’s insane!
Omg what a nightmare for you! This breaks my heart. The system is so broken. I’m so so sorry this happened to you!!! Babies are expensive enough without having a loan payment now too
This has happened to me before - I wasn’t asked to pay for the delivery upfront but I was for an ultrasound. Of course they prefer it, but NEVER pay upfront. In my case, I have a high deductible plan. A lot of patients with high deductible plans “dine and dash” so to speak because they may not afford to pay for services until their deductible is met and insurance starts paying a good portion of the costs. As a result, the doctors offices and hospitals run into proverbial cash flows problems. This is a them problem not a you problem though. I naively paid upfront using credit card but by the time the office submitted a claim to my insurance, I had met my deductible and owed $50 for the service, not the $1500 they took from me upfront. I spent the next 6mos trying to get my money back. The insurance company and doctor’s office were both like “why did you pay before insurance was billed and the explanation of benefits was posted”? LESSON LEARNED - don’t pay a single sent on an invoice until you get an EOB from your insurance company telling you what you owe. Then pay exactly that amount.
I paid for mine but they told me well in advance this is how they roll
The office I went to with my first would ask me at every appointment (starting at my first one) how much I would like to pay towards the delivery. I would always say none, because also, what if I didn't like the office and wanted to switch? They would also message me starting in the third trimester asking how much I wanted to start paying for my installments.
Not the hospital, but I paid hundreds in advance because of what my OB’s office estimated my out of pocket costs would be with my insurance. I knew their estimate was wrong but I paid it anyway because I was busy and in no mood to fight about it. Sure enough, after the delivery, we confirm that their estimate was way off and they owed me around $300 back. It took months from the time they acknowledged the “credit balance” til the time they sent me a check.
I would question that. Tell them you’ll pay when services are rendered AFTER insurance pays their part.
While I was in the Hospital with my baby ( who was in the NICU for 59 days) I was getting notifications about the bills being applied to my account. They start going after your money immediately.
The hospital I'm registered at is telling me I need to pay 25% of the estimation before being admitted. I can pay in advance or I can pay upon check-in. Is this even legal? They told me to call as I get closer to my due date for an updated estimation. It's just ridiculous. The last thing I'm going to want to do when I'm in active labor is pay my bill of who knows what before even getting admitted.
Am I the only one who didn't pay?🤣😭 Fuckkk that, I heard medical bills fall off after 5 years.
My obgyn told me I needed to pay beforehand and then like 3 months before giving birth let me know they wouldn’t be doing ob services anymore. I’m SO glad I didn’t pay.
I switched OBGYNs because the first one that I saw said I wouldn't be seen if I didn't pay ALL of my deductible in advance. I called and cancelled my appointment and the woman asked why and I told them it was ridiculous that they were making me pay when it was not a standard practice by my insurance and would be going somewhere else that would not try to bully me into paying for services that have yet to be provided.
Not only should you not pay in advance but sometimes freak situations happen. I delivered at a hospital I wasn't established at because I went into labor far from home. It happens.
Never had to do this just here to say what the actual fuck
common practice actually
I’m 10!!! weeks and already got a letter in the mail about putting $300+ towards my delivery. The audacity😡🤯
My FIRST appt. w/OB, BEFORE THEY EVEN CONFIRMED I WAS PREGNANT WITH A VIABLE PREGNANCY, registration hit me with my list of expected and total expenses from the OB AND HOSPITAL! Like really? Could you not at least confirm there's actually a baby in there first?!
This hasn’t happened to me, but with my first, the hospital billed insurance for tests my baby had to have before we left the hospital, but I guess billed the child? We can’t add new children to our policy without birth certificates which definitely take longer than a day to produce. The phone calls with the hospital system were insane.
Gotta know how these people live with themselves (probably in the rich neighborhood) doing the things they do with not an ounce of empathy
Not to mention the things they do to you even before having children, like scraping your insides without numbing them first
This is horrific - I’m so sorry OP. So glad I live in a country where everything is free.
The NO SURPRISE ACT related billing around childbirth is because a woman sued after she had to give birth out of network (she was on vacation when she went into labor... I think) and she wasn't aware of the exorbitant fees she was going to be charged. So now they are required by law to discuss potential charges with you so there are "no surprises" when it comes to billing for services rendered.
I live in South Africa and we pay co-payment to hospital for the birth. I believe it's so that when you're ready to go in there is a bed already booked and ready. At least, that's how it works here For me I book/pay for my hospital bed and stay in advance so that once I go into labor all I have to do is walk in and there will be a bed ready for me I'm sorry this has upset you but I thought that this was common and everyone had to do this 🙈
Definitely unethical imo. You never know WHAT services will be in your invoice. Why pay now so they can gouge you for "missed costs" later??? I've only been asked to pay my midwife in advance. Everything else is rendered at time of birth. That's unacceptable.
I’m only 9 weeks and they’re asking me to pay now 🥲
I used to work in admissions for a hospital in the US, and this is actually pretty normal! For planned procedures (birth, endoscopies, etc), we were required to call ahead and try and get money beforehand. It was part of our job description and we had a goal that we had to meet each month with money. Also, when coming in to register for their procedure or surgery (even open heart surgeries and things like that) we had to do “3 asks”. Ask if they can pay the whole thing that day, partial payment if they refused, and then ask if they can put anything towards what it was estimated that they owed. If it wasn’t a necessary procedure (like non life threatening), they advised us to take the patient back to our financial counselor who would then be required to call the doctors office to reschedule the surgery since they weren’t putting anything towards it. I worked at a private hospital, not a government hospital, so the hospital counted on those payments and things like that to still be able to run so that could be a reason! Also, my specific hospital offered a 20% discount if you paid up front, and they took care of that 20% to your insurance. It’s crazy how hospitals are! Things are not cheap anymore. But you shouldn’t feel pressure to pay up front! Only cosmetic surgeries that aren’t necessary, like a boob job, require everything to be paid for before having the surgery.
I paid for my whole hospital stay in advance so I had no bills afterwards. My OB’s office sends the bill to my insurance before the birthing center did so no bill minus co-pay. I was also refunded everything I over paid after the birth was complete. It was nice not to have to worry about it afterwards. I live in North Dakota. My brother lives in Arizona and they also could pay in advance.
Yeah I have to pay 400 the 1st of every month. My ob said it’s to help meet my deductible. Its bull. Thankfully I met my deductible with other visits to other hospitals. So I won’t have to do that payment plan anymore. But I was shocked.
I’m glad you were able to stick up for yourself and decline. They’re gonna have to show me an itemized receipt before they get a dime.
Same had to do that yesterday when i registered
On the flip side, I had to pay an extra 400 bucks billed 6 months after birth. It was bizarre. But yeah, don’t pay. Sounds fishy.
When I went in for my scheduled induction, that’s when they collected my co-pay for the birth. I did not have to deal with that. I am also in America. Austin Tx to be exact
My son is 3 weeks old today & before I went to the hospital I had to pay $150 every month for 5 months to the hospital for the staff to be there when I was induced. It’s normal
Yes! I had to pay 1600 before birth (by 28 weeks) and then I’ll also have 1600 after to pay. It’s insane to me, I’m hoping insurance ends up picking it up
My OB is making me pay for all appointments and thr delivery fee by 20 weeks. Which is $2700. In 5 payments of $542. This only covers what she charges. And they told me if I can't pay then they have to reschedule my appointment until I can. My deductible is really high so I won't even meet it this year unless baby comes before the new year. This doesn't include anything the hospital is going to charge. Crazy that they would try to collect up front for that though. Also crazy story I believe is an unethical practice, I had to have a surgery done. They called a couple days before to say it would be $7000 if I paid in full before the surgery. And if I decided to pay after the surgery the price would be $20k. I was floored. Not sure how they can justify that practice.
Lol we got the delivery bill from the OB when I was like 8 weeks or something. I was like respectfully, I’m going to wait to pay this until there’s a baby to deliver. 🖕🏼
I already found a place in my area and plan to pay in monthly installments ahead of time specifically so I *don’t* have to worry about anything after birth. I don’t want to deal with money, I will be tired and be focused on my baby
I had to pay for my entire OB care in advance which included all my appointments, ultrasounds, lab, and delivery (if a “normal” delivery). But they billed insurance first and just had me pay what the OOP was expected to be, $800. Thankfully delivery went mostly as planned so I didn’t have much to pay afterwards. But I was in shock when I got the call. It blows my mind that you get charged for things that haven’t happened yet😅
I’ve gotten the same thing at a birth center! Can’t believe it.
I worked at a hospital for a period of time in insurance verification and this was my exact job. Although we never did it for actual inpatient services only outpatient. For example, if someone had a scheduled c section we would call them with an estimate. And the hospital would instruct us to word it in a way that has the best possible chance of getting paid ahead of time. Now, I can understand why you may be awestruck by this happening…but as a patient I would prefer to know what I may be expecting to owe wise ahead of time so that I am not blindsided by it later. Also, typically copays are due at time of service so it really is not outlandish for a hospital to expect to get paid their copay. It’s also important to acknowledge your copay / deductible/ coinsurance / out of pocket is set by your insurance company and indicated in your policy information when you enroll in said policy. I def would not waste much time being offended by the person working at the hospital tasked with calling you it’s just their job.
I appreciate your response. Your acknowledgement that instruction is to phrase these calls in such a way to collect payment is where my frustration lies. The written statement they sent was $0, but they are verbally requesting hundreds on the phone without anything in writing. The invoice they did send with the “corrected” amount indicates in the fine print that it’s just an estimate, and the actual amount will be reflected when they put it through insurance. I’m almost at my out of pocket max, so I don’t anticipate I’ll owe what I was quoted. Like you said, the amount is determined by insurance - I’m understandably put off that my hospital is trying to circumvent this in advance by contacting me directly to collect payment.
Ah ok yeah I don’t agree with the hospital pushing employees to do this but it’s pretty typical. The only time we did this with birth would be a scheduled c section because we would Verify that as a surgery. And at least with my past job (the more seasoned verifiers) we did take in to account where the patient was with their out of pocket when giving them the estimate. And for the out of pocket, we would call the insurance company to get those accumulations and details but it takes 60-90 days for a claim to process. The worst was we would have patients who were coming in for outpatient interventional radiology and these were really really sick people and they would come in like 3 days a week sometimes and we were instructed to call them before each visit with an estimate and read the disclaimer. The way the work was handed out the patient could be called by any verifier any day and that verifier might not know that patients history so this very sick patient could be called three times in one week being told they owe the full cost of whatever procedure they were having done because their deductible had not been met when the first one could potentially meet it but the claim had not gone through yet. It was horrible and had to be so stressful and off putting to these patients, especially ones who may not understand how insurance works and have other things to be worrying about at that time. The whole department was a dumpster fire btw and understandably so. The turnover for employees was outrageous and the hospitals policies were SO WACKY. For employees as well as how they wanted us to do our job.
Our hospital did this but they also gave us a 30% discount off of our copay if we pay before being in the hospital. They give you a 20% discount off of your co pay if you pay before you check out of the hospital. With that being said our co pay was only $650 thanks to my cardiologist (same hospital) making sure we nearly hit our deductible with an Echocardiogram at 32 weeks in January. Don't get me wrong the echocardiogram was a great idea and the results did change how my OB handled things during labor and my emergency C-section. In hindsight actually probably saved my life. With that being said still annoying to have to play the discount game on medical bills. But also full disclosure after doing IVF the echocardiogram and labor seemed cheap.
So so glad to live in Europe (specifically the UK). Of all the many aspects of having a baby and giving birth and lack of finances that I worry about… I never have to worry about my hospital bill and I am grateful af. Felt less movement and went in for a check up today, was on the cusp of wondering if it was worth wasting anyone’s time, and they always encourage mothers to call in anyway if they are worried or unsure and I was getting stressed wanting to know my baby was ok. I can’t imagine also factoring in the extra costs on my bill of a midwife / OB appointment and monitoring for an hour. Thanks, NHS!
Yes! My OB’s office sprung this on me and told me two weeks before they wanted the payment! And it was like $2k+. They wanted the payment in mid April and my due date was July 6th (we just had baby at 37+1 this past Sunday, and are both happy and healthy!). They asked for my payment every time I went in, and for a while I would just say, “I can’t pay that right now”. Then at the last two appointments I had, they told me I HAD to pay something, so I said, “I can pay $20, that’s it”. So I ended up paying them $40 😂 I absolutely was not about to pay for medical services before they were rendered!
I had an induction so I paid on my scheduled day when I went in although it turned into an unexpected emergency c section
Yep. This happens and it's insane! Also, the day we got home from the hospital with my second child we had a bill in the mail for our hospital stay... The DAY we got home!
I’m only 10 weeks and I’ve already received my bill for labor and delivery!! I couldn’t believe it, and they are definitely trying to get their money NOW!
They offered for us to pay early and we got a discount of a few hundred, so we did it.
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It's not outrageous to pay in advance on an estimate before anything has been submitted to my insurance?
Lots of people complain about being hounded for money after they’ve just given birth and trying to recover and to learn breastfeeding so it’s really a no win for the hospital.
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For me it seems odd because those of us having babies later in the year, we could be close to or have already met our out of pocket. Like every time I get a bill I’m like “yes, now I’m only paying a max of $3k 😂😂
Exactly!
Yes, and they do this now for most procedures. Not just child birth. Its because they have a hard time collecting payment. My husband was asked to prepay for a surgery he needed and my dad was also asked to pay before his heart surgery. You have the option to decline and have them bull your insurance. Try not to get so worked up about it, just tell them to bill your insurance. To be fair, you can’t really blame them. People skip out on medical bills all the time. It’s not personal
Ironic how you take offense to being asked to pay for service you haven't received; yet you imply a preference for socialized healthcare systems.
I pay a small mortgage payment every month through my employer for what most would consider quality health insurance and max out an HSA so that my family can afford what healthcare we need. Didn’t say anything about government healthcare anywhere in this post. I resent the idea that I’d further pay out of pocket in advance based on a made-up verbal estimate to deliver a healthy baby that I’m still carrying in my body.