Medical bills going to collections

[MattKovsky]

Hi, I live in Washington state and am hoping to get some advice about medical bills. A chiropractor who I had been to last year just sent me a warning letter stating that my bill for a couple hundred dollars would be going to collections. I have paid all my other medical bills, but I don't feel that I was charged fairly for the services billed by the chiropractor.

The main issue is that I was charged for some services that were not performed, and I was charged for multiple very small services in a single visit, which really seem like they should just be part of the visit itself. It would be very much like going to a medical doctor and being charged for the visit with an additional $30 for having your blood pressure read and $25 for having your weight and height measured.

Should I contact the insurance company or chiropractor's office, and what should I say? I don't want any negative marks on my credit, so I will probably pay if I have to. But it really doesn't seem fair. I would be very grateful for any advice....

 

[Michael Wechsler]

A year ago is a long time to challenge the bills but why are you paying these amounts? Didn't your insurance company cover it? I don't know the situation but typically these amounts are adjusted if the insured pays out of pocket. IMHO this entire area is extremely shady since these charges are typically ludicrous (yet supposedly approved as "reasonable and customary" by our government for insurance purposes) and are never provided to a patient up front. You may want to work it out with your chiropractor's office and work out payment for a reasonable bill you would owe and you do owe something...