So irritated—$350 facility fee for 10 minute office visit

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've seen several different specialists at the University of Maryland, with Fepblue Basic. All covered normally.

Is this a new fee since the pandemic?

Yes, we have been going for years without this fee. At our visit last week they announced it. This is at the MidTown location.

Also to be clear—insurance will pay the doctor as usual. They will only pay $7 of this completely separate facility fee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ridiculous. Vote early, vote often! is all I can say.

Or perhaps see if Dr will meet you at a Starbucks and accept a personal check.

Vote for what? Are you advocating voter fraud? No one wants to be a doctor anymore because getting paid $7 for 10 minutes can’t keep you in business.

Vote for healthcare reform. (How'd you get to voter fraud?)

[Anonymous]

I recently had this issue come up because I need to see a specialist at Johns Hopkins. They said they couldn’t tell me in advance what the total fee would be, but I had to provide credit card info and sign a waiver in advance agreeing to pay whatever the fee ends up being. I’m really uncomfortable about this but I need to see this doctor so I don’t think I really have a choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I recently had this issue come up because I need to see a specialist at Johns Hopkins. They said they couldn’t tell me in advance what the total fee would be, but I had to provide credit card info and sign a waiver in advance agreeing to pay whatever the fee ends up being. I’m really uncomfortable about this but I need to see this doctor so I don’t think I really have a choice.

This is nuts. Doesn’t Maryland have transparency laws?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ridiculous. Vote early, vote often! is all I can say.

Or perhaps see if Dr will meet you at a Starbucks and accept a personal check.

Vote for what? Are you advocating voter fraud? No one wants to be a doctor anymore because getting paid $7 for 10 minutes can’t keep you in business.

Vote for healthcare reform. (How'd you get to voter fraud?)

(I think pp is referring to the 'vote often' bit which is obviously a canned (been around forever) joke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've seen several different specialists at the University of Maryland, with Fepblue Basic. All covered normally.

Is this a new fee since the pandemic?

Yes, we have been going for years without this fee. At our visit last week they announced it. This is at the MidTown location.

Also to be clear—insurance will pay the doctor as usual. They will only pay $7 of this completely separate facility fee.

My insurance company will dispute the fee for me. Not sure how or even why, generally it is pretty sucky insurance, but they always get the facility fee nixed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've seen several different specialists at the University of Maryland, with Fepblue Basic. All covered normally.

Is this a new fee since the pandemic?

Yes, we have been going for years without this fee. At our visit last week they announced it. This is at the MidTown location.

Also to be clear—insurance will pay the doctor as usual. They will only pay $7 of this completely separate facility fee.

My insurance company will dispute the fee for me. Not sure how or even why, generally it is pretty sucky insurance, but they always get the facility fee nixed.

This is what I mean by push back with your insurance. Keep talking to people and elevate it.

When my daughter was born she spent a month in the NICU and we had so many bills that were just headscratchers, like $600 for lab fees that the insurance explained to me was a "junk" fee for routine labs that were never read by a physician - they just slapped the Dr's name on them b/ce the Dr was affiliated with the facility. I told them if they didn't recognize that fee as legitimate then why should I have to pay it.

It took a year, but they dug into and I didn't pay. There are also lots of complicated contractual agreements across the healthcare industry. I had another bill where they determined their agreement with the hospital system didn't allow the hospital system to balance bill me.

[Anonymous]

Disgusting billing. They count on patients giving up and paying. Patients are often too sick/overwhelmed to dispute predatory billing.

The Republican party actively supports a health care system that preys on and exploits the sick for profit. So yes, voting matters.

[Anonymous]

This is happening all over the country. Insurance sells plans to employers that “you will only have to pay small copay to see your provider”. Then comes the bill with a facility fee no one wants to cover. Then insurance and provider office blames patient and tells them find another doctor when a high percentage are finding way to charge facility fee. My favorite is the virtual visit with the doctor that still charges the facility fee. Just another way that insurances and providers are making healthcare unaffordable! United- UMR - known for this

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes I had to pay a significant hospital fee just to see a specialist at Medstar Georgetown (10 minute office visit). I tried to refute but unsuccessful. The doctor was excellent so I put up with it for a few years because I only saw him once or twice a year then I left Medstar when he retired.

Medstar Georgetown is a nightmare to deal with administratively

Ask if the correct billing code has been applied. I am at Georgetown 1-2 days a week for treatment for months. Sometimes I get a bill for $1800 that takes a couple phone calls to straighten out. It’s because the wrong code was entered.

[Anonymous]

I had this issue on my old plan. There were several in-network providers that worked from out-of-network facilities. Beyond ridiculous. I just had to find different providers and be meticulous about asking questions of their billing department and my insurance company prior to any appointments.

[Anonymous]

Our insurance (PPO) will not pay for anything that is hospital based unless we are admitted into the hospital.

My OB/GYN is in a standalone building, but she is part of a hospital chain, and sent pap smear to their standard lab. Since the lab was IN the hospital my insurance would not pay any of it.

I had no idea where they were sending the labs. So now whenever I make an appointment, not only do I have to find out if the doctor is in network, are they in a stand alone building AND where they send any potential labs.

Drives me crazy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Disgusting billing. They count on patients giving up and paying. Patients are often too sick/overwhelmed to dispute predatory billing.

The Republican party actively supports a health care system that preys on and exploits the sick for profit. So yes, voting matters.

Is it the actual doc's office/specialist doing the billing, or is that handed over to the larger hospital facility?

If it's the latter, then it sounds like the docs office is using the hospital for overhead and there should be a fee.

If it's the former, then the the doctor should just bill you for his services.

Agree it's all terribly stupid.

Vote for health care reform.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes I had to pay a significant hospital fee just to see a specialist at Medstar Georgetown (10 minute office visit). I tried to refute but unsuccessful. The doctor was excellent so I put up with it for a few years because I only saw him once or twice a year then I left Medstar when he retired.

Medstar Georgetown is a nightmare to deal with administratively

+1. Same experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Find someone in network with your insurance. That’s what everyone has to do.

I wish it was that easy. The doctor is in network with our plan. It’s because their office is on the hospital campus that we are charged this special “facilityfee”

what does your BC/BS statement say you have to pay? "You Owe" amount? that's all you have to pay