Just a question

[momcobb]

OK, thanks again for the advice.

So far, our medical bills are over $33,000.00 and not all of the bills have come in.

Right now my husband is unemployed. We do have savings and some investments, which we are living off of. (I am disabled and can not work, which I wish I could..I know makes no difference, just letting you know why my husband's employment is so essential.)

My question is, if I can only pay a small amount each month to each of the different parties we owe, can they put us into collection?

One example I have is I called one billing company and I asked them if i could make monthly payments. At first they said $100 a month, then $75 and I finally got it down to $52. One other place said I had to make a minimum payment of $25 a month.

If I can not afford to make these monthly payments that they requested, can they put me into collection? Do I have any other recourse to renegotiate the payment?

And we haven't even gotten to making payments on the hospital bill.

And one last question regarding hospital bills, is there any way to negotiate to get the bill lowered. Like if you can get the reductions insurance companies get and pay it off in full? Does that ever happen?

Thanks again.

 

[Proserpina]

OK, thanks again for the advice.

So far, our medical bills are over $33,000.00 and not all of the bills have come in.

Right now my husband is unemployed. We do have savings and some investments, which we are living off of. (I am disabled and can not work, which I wish I could..I know makes no difference, just letting you know why my husband's employment is so essential.)

My question is, if I can only pay a small amount each month to each of the different parties we owe, can they put us into collection?

One example I have is I called one billing company and I asked them if i could make monthly payments. At first they said $100 a month, then $75 and I finally got it down to $52. One other place said I had to make a minimum payment of $25 a month.

If I can not afford to make these monthly payments that they requested, can they put me into collection? Do I have any other recourse to renegotiate the payment?

And we haven't even gotten to making payments on the hospital bill.

And one last question regarding hospital bills, is there any way to negotiate to get the bill lowered. Like if you can get the reductions insurance companies get and pay it off in full? Does that ever happen?

Thanks again.

Yes, they can put your past due account into collections. The vast majority of hospitals though will try to work with the patient/family - they can sometimes discount procedures, negotiate a payment plan etc. Occasionally a provider will write off the charge completely.

Explain the financial situation to either their billing department or financial services office (they might have slightly different names but it should be fairly clear) or, again, perhaps the patient liaison/assistance people can offer suggestions.

Is your husband now physically able to work? (the answer to this might give you another option)

 

[ecmst12]

With your current low income, have you tried applying for medicaid? There should be a social worker at the hospital who can help you apply, and approval can even be retroactive in a situation like this.

 

[momcobb]

Yes, they can put your past due account into collections. The vast majority of hospitals though will try to work with the patient/family - they can sometimes discount procedures, negotiate a payment plan etc. Occasionally a provider will write off the charge completely.

Explain the financial situation to either their billing department or financial services office (they might have slightly different names but it should be fairly clear) or, again, perhaps the patient liaison/assistance people can offer suggestions.

Is your husband now physically able to work? (the answer to this might give you another option)

I guess I wasn't too clear about making the payments. I intend to make them, but if I can't afford the two examples of $52 and $25, can I renegotiate with them? If I make lower payments than they asked for can they put me into collection? I know I am repeating myself, just need clarification.

And the answer to the question about my husband being able to work is sort of.

He had a problem the other night where he was acting like he was drunk (he doesn't drink) he was slurring his words and as the night wore on, it got worse. He tried to walk and was swaying all over. He tried later to get out of bed and fell. And it got to the point where he couldn't get words out or form sentences.

Now this happened a year ago and we went to the ER (per our GP advice) and they ran all kinds of tests and had a Neurologist see him. They found nothing wrong. The Neurologist said it could happen again or never again. It lasted for a week. (We think it was stress related due to his job, but not sure) This time it only lasted two days. (Again might be stress due to the bills and no job.)

I have not let him drive and have been watching him all week. He still seems to be a little weak and sways a little when he walks. We didn't go to the ER, but we do have an apt. with our GP next week.

He is really depressed today about all that is going on.

My only concern is that he has a job interview on Friday and I am concerned about him driving.

Sorry this is so long, but needed to explain the sort of.

Thanks again for all the patience with me and your help

 

[Proserpina]

I am not a physician or other professional health-care provider - I want to make that very clear, ok?

But some of the symptoms you have mentioned correlate to at least a few drug reactions....in particular, certain anti-histamines can cause the same symptoms you listed (and moreso when the recommended dosage is exceeded - which is perhaps surprisingly easy to do!).

It's something to consider. Did your husband ever receive a diagnosis, incidentally?

With regards to the payments, the hospital or billing company is not obligated to negotiate or accept a lower payment. Many will, but there is nothing compelling them to do so. If you pay a lower amount without their approval, they can and will probably take further steps and you can end up in collections.

Would either of you qualify for SSI or SSDI?

 

[ecmst12]

They are not likely to accept payments of $50/month on a bill that large. That's just not realistic or reasonable. Perhaps they would allow it for a few months, but not for the 20 years it would take to pay the bill off at that rate.

 

[lealea1005]

Quote by momcobb:

He had a problem the other night where he was acting like he was drunk (he doesn't drink) he was slurring his words and as the night wore on, it got worse. He tried to walk and was swaying all over. He tried later to get out of bed and fell. And it got to the point where he couldn't get words out or form sentences.

Have you reported this reaction to the Physician prescribing your husband's Seroquel?

 

[momcobb]

I do not know how to do multiple quotes so here it goes.

ecmst...we do not qualify for medicaid, we have too many assets and also, before we moved to NV, we lived in SF and my husband worked for Sony and made good money (for here it was great money), so they look at our income tax returns and his money made so far this year and we don't qualify.

Dogmatique....no he never received a diagnosis...Neurologist just told us it could happen again or never again. We spent 8 hours in the ER for this, lots of tests. He doesn't take anti-histamines. Since I am disabled, I am already getting SSDI, but it is very little.

lealea....my husband slowly weaned off the Seroquel after the hospital visit. The only meds he takes now is Soma (generic, cant spell it), Hydrocodone-APAP and melatonin. Been taking all three of these for years and never had any problems.