Financial Assistance.......

daiquirri

I am wondering if anyone knows of any other financial assistance, available for pregnant woment, who do have jobs and insurance.  I'm concerned I'm not going to qualify for medicaid, and just received my bill for doctor visits for the duration of my pregnancy.  I have 5 months to pay 2,500$$ so basically 500$ a month.  This was not a planned pregnancy and this is an expense I definitely didnt plan on.  Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

cpalumbos

I don't know if there is anything you can do about the doctors bill except to call their billing person and ask them if they can do a discount.Some doctors offices can be willing to negotiate if you explain your situation.

When it comes to the hospital if definitely pays call and ask. I called them as  soon as I could and they told me that there are a couple programs we could apply for. In the end we didn't need it, but I would call and ask. They were able to take my bill from $2800 dollars to around $600.00.

I am in Northern Colorado so we delivered at Poudre Valley Hospital. 

yellowsnow

First, do you have health insurance?  Does the doctor's bill reflect a payment from your insurance company?  You DO NOT have to make any payments towards your deductible or services before insurance has been billed.  I came across this situation while working in benefits right before I began staying at home with my LO.  A woman called me and told me that her doctor was asking she pay her deductible of $5000 before the baby was even born.  That is NOT acceptable!  No one, not even the doctor, knows how much that baby is going to cost in services.  It could be a quick, easy, non-medicated delivery and not come close to $5000.  

Please, please, please, make sure that if you have insurance that they pay FIRST before making any payments to your doctor's office.  Taking a few minutes to make a call could save you a ton of money. Another example- my dad has a stint put in for some heart issues.  His doctor sent a bill for $700 that demanded payment immediately.  My dad asked me to look at it and I made one simple phone call to the doctor.  His portion was only $40 because a payment was made by the insurance company since the bill had been sent to my dad.  My dad was ready to write the $700 check for fear of hurting his credit.  Always, always, always, question.  Who knows if he would have gotten $660 returned to him! 

PM if you have any other questions.  Good luck!