Did you have to pay your deductible up front?

Rockpea · December 2010

If you have a plan where you have to meet your deductible before insurance will pay, is your doctor making you pay your deductible to them up front or are they just billing the insurance for services or something like that? I know that the office doesn't bill until after the pregnancy but my ins. changes at the first of the year and they are telling me that I will need to pay my $5000 deductible to the doc's office by week 27 or 32. This just doesn't sound right to me. Called ins co and they said that the office could do it this way, but most doctor's don't because the don't know what the total is and if I have overpaid, then they will have to give me a refund.

Winter*Mommy · December 2010

I've never heard of that. I've heard of having to pre-pay for your delivery, but many offices don't request that until around 30 weeks. And the way they do it is they call your insurance, find out what you'll be responsible for and bill you for that.

Rockpea · December 2010

Thanks. Apparently, not too many people have heard of this, not even my insurance company. They said it can be done but usually doctors don't do it that way.

shaxx · December 2010

I have to pay my part up front. I'm making monthly installments for 5 months for a total out of pocket around $630.00. This was my doctor's office policy. Of course this is just for the doctor. They said I would have a seperate bill from the hospital etc;. This amount is inclusive of my yearly deductible I have to meet of $350.00. The rest is the 20% I would owe. Aetna pays the other 80%. Of course this is all an estimate!

GypsyEsq · December 2010

My doc asked me to do that -- did monthly installments. Like pp this was just for the doctor. Delivery and L&D services were charged separately. And billed to the insurance directly. Then I paid my co-insurance.

_Amanda_ · December 2010

I've worked for 2 different OB/GYN offices and at both they have asked for the delivery amt up front. So if your insurance is through BCBS, your delivery will be about $2200 (vaginal, no comps), we will set up a payment plan for that amount to be paid in full by the end of your 5th month.

Rockpea · December 2010

Thanks ladies. I understand that doctors want their portion up front, like a payment plan at X month, but this is ONLY my deductible. The 5000 is my deductible not her fee. They have not billed my insurance anything. I think she is doing this to ensure that I have paid 5000 and she gets the remainder of her money. I have yet to see an itemized bill, which I have asked for.

shaxx · December 2010

Sory for my confusion....WOW what kind of insurance charges a $5000.00 deductible?? I have Aetna and mine is only $350.00 per year. I've never heard such a thing. Sounds like you may need to change doctor's. There is no way you should have a deductible like that!

GypsyEsq · December 2010

Rockpea:
Thanks ladies. I understand that doctors want their portion up front, like a payment plan at X month, but this is ONLY my deductible. The 5000 is my deductible not her fee. They have not billed my insurance anything. I think she is doing this to ensure that I have paid 5000 and she gets the remainder of her money. I have yet to see an itemized bill, which I have asked for.

I understood what you were saying, it may be that your deductible is less than your OB's fee or what she expects to bill you. Makes sense to me that they can't give you an itemized bill since it would include future items. And that's also why they can't bill insurance yet - they can't bill them until the entire service is rendered which is at the end of you pregnancy. I agree it sucks though but I don't think it's that unusual. My pre-paid OB fee was also the entire amount of my deductible plus some amounts billed as co-insurance. And then I paid more on top of that when I had a c-section instead of a vaginal birth. I happened to have a crappy plan when it came to maternity benefits.

Did you have to pay your deductible up front?

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