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none2pleased
PeaAddict
PeaNut 250,729
February 2006
Posts: 1,035
Layouts: 0
Loc: Cruisin to anywhere but here
 |  Posted: 3/1/2013 4:29:12 PM
The day after Christmas I took my husband to the e/r for what we later, much later, found out was ulcerative colitis. Major pain, couldnt keep anything in him, food,water nothing, weak and massive amounts of blood loss.
We waited at the e/r for 2 hours, they sent him for a ct scan and the dr came in and said "some sort of colitis, take this antibiotic and pain meds and you will be fine in a few days"
So...fast forward two days later and he is MUCH worse, passed out on me twice in one day just trying to get him back to the car. I took him to a different e/r, explained the situation and what had and had not happened at the other e/r.
They took him straight back, hooked him up to iv, drew blood, stool check etc, etc and admitted him. He was there for 5 days on constant iv antibiotics, fluids and he had to be given blood. This hospital was the only one that could make a definite dx and actually help him.
My argument is the bill at the first e/r. They did not help. AT ALL. Can I fight this bill? Do I call the insurance company for help? Or do I start with the hospital? |
[image)http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp146/AMRgroup/chrispea2.jpg(/image]
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thatgirlintexas
Coarsening our society one F you at a time
PeaNut 43,787
July 2002
Posts: 8,332
Layouts: 255
Loc: the world wide web
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 4:34:51 PM
My argument is the bill at the first e/r. They did not help. AT ALL. Can I fight this bill? Do I call the insurance company for help? Or do I start with the hospital?
No, you cannot fight a bill because you feel as if they didn't do anything to help your husband. You used the services of the hospital and you are expected to pay for them. |
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SonjaW
PeaFixture
PeaNut 123,540
January 2004
Posts: 3,123
Layouts: 0
Loc: San Jose, California
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 4:40:11 PM
While I don't agree with the logic of the previous response, I have found this is a losing battle. Even when I did not want the treatment and it didn't do me any good, it was useless to try and fight them unless you are willing to take it all the way and deal with the collections calls and having them ding your credit report. | |
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~ArtsyAngel~
StuckOnPeas
PeaNut 56,599
November 2002
Posts: 2,586
Layouts: 235
Loc: Middle Tennessee
| Posted: 3/1/2013 4:43:11 PM
I would call and talk to them. I had to take my DH to the ER one time, because he was the sickest he'd ever been. He had been throwing up for hours, and he felt like something was hung in his throat. Fast forward several hours, to the middle of the night. They told us they needed to do a scope, which was considered surgery, but at the time, we didn't realize what a big deal it was. They didn't really elaborate. It ended up being food poisoning, but the way they were talking, I thought he might die~
Anyway, the bill came later, and it was ridiculous. I called billing, and talked to them, told them the situation. They didn't make us pay our part, they just took the insurance payment.
*edited to add- it couldn't hurt! |
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justalittletike
AncestralPea
PeaNut 434,313
August 2009
Posts: 4,497
Layouts: 26
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 4:45:58 PM
So you got a ct scan and other various services and don't want to pay?
I don't think that is going to work out for you because you didn't the diagnosis you wanted.
Edited to say: our oldest had a seizure and they made us get him checked out. They literally have him children's Motrin and billed us 500.00 for the room use. |
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angievp
Ideay pues?
PeaNut 143,106
April 2004
Posts: 6,644
Layouts: 36
Loc: Miami
| Posted: 3/1/2013 4:51:11 PM
My argument is the bill at the first e/r. They did not help. AT ALL. Can I fight this bill? Do I call the insurance company for help? Or do I start with the hospital?
I'm sorry but this doesn't make sense. Should I refuse to pay my opthalmologist and the myriad of tests that she ordered to treat my borderline glaucoma because the pressure in my eye isn't going down? Should I also refuse to pay my rheumatologist because I still get flareups?
You *can* fight anything, I suppose. SHOULD you? I wouldn't. | |
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Pattie576
BucketHead
PeaNut 224,413
September 2005
Posts: 694
Layouts: 5
Loc: PA
| Posted: 3/1/2013 4:51:34 PM
I had a problem with the ER at our hospital regarding my DD when she was about 4. She was misdiagnosed. I ended up calling the patient advocate at the hospital and explained the situation. They ended up NOT billing me our copay which was $100 or anything else. The head of the ER was to meet with the PA who treated her, and I was told she would get a note in her file about the incident. So yeah, you can try to fight it if they screwed up.
Pattie
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Hershey
StuckOnPeas
PeaNut 23,335
October 2001
Posts: 2,626
Layouts: 110
Loc: Idaho
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 4:56:04 PM
I've fought a bill like this an won - a couple of times.
First time was yrs and yrs ago. I was pregnant with my 3rd child, waking up in the middle of the night in horrible pain. DH took me to the ER and the dr on call took a urine sample. He said there was something in my urine but it was probably just the baby sitting on major organs and causing the pain. Sent me home with a pain killer and told me to put a heating pad on my back.
Two hours later I was in much worse pain and by this time my OB was in his office so I went there. Long story short I had kidney stones but it was to the point my kidneys were starting to shut down. I was admitted to the hospital and spent a week.
The second time was just a couple years ago. I went in with what I thought was a stroke - numbmess in my right side, slurred speech. Spent 2 hours in the er (most of it waiting), saw the dr about 5 minutes and the nurse a total of 10 min. Got the bill and they billed my insurance as a high prioritized trama (I ended up having a sinus infection).
Both times I called and talked to the hospital administrator. The first one I got the bill completely taken away, because the dr sending me home and not following up on the urine test having problems and almost putting me into kidney failure was totally uncalled for.
The second they rebilled it to my insurance and my bill went from $5000 to less then $1000.
It doesn't hurt to try! |
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AnneinCO
PeaNut
PeaNut 302,495
March 2007
Posts: 265
Layouts: 0
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 4:58:18 PM
The one time I tried to fight something I had no luck. I can't remember what they said but it was basically that we used the services, they did nothing wrong.
My husband had just had his wisdom teeth pulled and one of them was packed. He thought he swallowed the strip and that it felt like it was caught in his throat. Nothing he did seemed to Help. it was the middle of the night and the ER was closer than waking the oral surgeon and then driving through a mountain pass in the middle of winter. We really thought it would be an in and out type of thing. They could not see anything with a light so they took an X-ray. The doctor comes in with the X-ray and points at something on it and says "there it is. My concern is that the location is such that it could either continue done properly into the stomach or it could go into his lungs." That freaked us out so he stayed as outpatient and they sent a camera down then next morning, and of course they saw nothing. He was released and we went back to the oral surgeon to have it repacked... He reached in and pulled it out of the socket where it belonged. He looked at the X-ray and it showed on there too. Then he gave us the riot act about calling him next time. |
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o-pea-one
PeaFixture
PeaNut 255,928
April 2006
Posts: 3,577
Layouts: 1
Loc: Hiding in my closet
| Posted: 3/1/2013 5:01:40 PM
I have. I went to the local ER one might in horrible pain. They gave me fluids and something else, and told me it was either a female issue or an ulcer. I felt better after the fluids, so they sent me home. I felt they totally blew me off on my concerns. I told them it wasn't a female issue, but that something was wrong.
Less than two weeks later, the pain came back. They told me I could go to the clinic in another week, or go back to the ER. I went to my family Dr. He sent me to. Gastro Dr. And next thing I know I am having gallbladder surgery. There was no easy way to remove the stones, and upon being touched the gallbladder ruptured. The whole area around it was inflamed and infected. I was close to being septic. I had to have a drain and heavy antibiotics after.
When the ER billing called, I informed them I was in the process of hiring a lawyer, because of what happened. The surgeon said it should have been diagnosed, and she couldn't believe they missed it.
Never paid them a dime. I didn't go after them to pay for the surgery though. I would have needed it regardless, but the pain and complications were on their shoulders. |
Heather
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irishscrappermom8
AncestralPea
PeaNut 220,508
August 2005
Posts: 4,543
Layouts: 52
Loc: IL
| Posted: 3/1/2013 5:03:41 PM
I know you are upset that they didn't diagnose your DH, but ERs are really more a treatment option to get you through and emergency and then you either move forward with a specialist or your general practitioner to get a diagnosis if they can't pinpoint what's causing your problem.
Your DH received treatment, a medical service and the bill needs to be paid. I wouldn't even think of not paying it. I do understand your frustration. I was a kid and had an emergency appendectomy which ended up not to be because of appendicitis at all. It took three years and 15 doctors before I was diagnosed with ulcerative colits. Following your logic, my parents should not have paid all the doctors that I went to when trying to find out what I had. |
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Bingcherry
StuckOnPeas
PeaNut 198,489
March 2005
Posts: 2,997
Layouts: 5
Loc: Sunny Orlando, FL
 | Posted: 3/1/2013 5:47:04 PM
You can fight it but you won't win. They treated him regardless of his diagnosis. That's what the ER is meant to do. |
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none2pleased
PeaAddict
PeaNut 250,729
February 2006
Posts: 1,035
Layouts: 0
Loc: Cruisin to anywhere but here
| Posted: 3/1/2013 5:48:30 PM
I did not say that I was not going to pay the bill. The ct scan, I do not have a problem with. The e/r bill though is another story. Remember this was the week after Christmas. We could not get in to see ANY doctor ANYWHERE but at the e/r.
The e/r did not even take his blood. If they had they would have seen that he was already anemic, to the point that he needed a blood transfusion. They didn't give him any fluids even though it had been over a week that he had received any real nurishment. He lost 12 lbs in one week from lack of food and blood loss.
IF they had taken the appropriate steps to dx and treat, he would have started getting better from that day instead of being at home for another 2 days in pain, sick and passing out before we could actually find someone who would take the time and do what an e/r should.
So, I am not saying that I don't want to pay it. BUT why should I be the one to pay the 1800.00 in e/r bills from them, and then turn around and pay it again to another hospital for the same problem?
Would you continue to pay a mechanic if he could not correctly dx and fix your car problems? I myself would have a hard time paying the Toyota dealership 100.00 to tell me I just needed brake cleaner and then a week later my brakes fail and have to have them replaced for another $500 bucks.
It just seems like more action should have been taken from the start. |
[image)http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp146/AMRgroup/chrispea2.jpg(/image]
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none2pleased
PeaAddict
PeaNut 250,729
February 2006
Posts: 1,035
Layouts: 0
Loc: Cruisin to anywhere but here
| Posted: 3/1/2013 5:49:50 PM
They treated him regardless of his diagnosis
Actually, they didn't. See above. |
[image)http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp146/AMRgroup/chrispea2.jpg(/image]
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happeawife
PeaAddict
PeaNut 107,627
September 2003
Posts: 1,336
Layouts: 1
Loc: the looney bin!
| Posted: 3/1/2013 5:55:35 PM
I fought a bill I received from urgent care that my DD was ambulanced out of. She had gone to the Dr. for 3 days straight. No one would listen, they just kept sending us home with a new routine. On the fourth day it was BAD. I rushed her back to urgent care where they said they instantly hooked her up to an IV and called for an ambulance. My DD was literally dying. She had a blood level of 3.8 and you are dead at 3.
The bastards had the audacity to send me a bill a few weeks later and one for the ambulance. I let them know in no uncertain terms that I would not be paying those bills when they are the reason my child required the services she did and if they wanted to continue to discuss it I would get back to them with the name of my attorney. The bills disappeared. |
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Riprornfun
PeaNut
PeaNut 19,722
August 2001
Posts: 33
Layouts: 0
Loc: Pooler, GA
| Posted: 3/1/2013 6:41:48 PM
I'm with Patty576. Hopefully you still have the discharge summaries from both hospitals, along with the bills. Take them to the Patient Advocate at the first hospital and discuss your concerns. If that office is not willing to listen, move up to the next, which could easily be the Quality Assurance or Risk Management Office, which ever that hospital has. Make sure your husband and the supporting documents are with you, or he signs a release of information for you to discuss his situation. Since he's not a minor, they don't necessarily have to discuss anything about him without his presence or permission. If you have enough documentation to show that he was misdiagnosed, they "should" be willing to work to find a resolution suitable to both parties. Definitely take the time to speak to the advocates though, thats what they're there for. I have a little experience regarding that area, since thats what I do...  |
-Terri
Time to start using all these supplies I've collected over the years!
Lets get ta' croppin'!!! | |
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perumbula
oooh, what you said!
PeaNut 27,933
January 2002
Posts: 10,115
Layouts: 97
Loc: bedlam
| Posted: 3/1/2013 7:13:23 PM
You won't be able to get the charges completely eliminated, but I'd expect you could get them very much reduced, especially if you can show a lack of proper care and that the hospital missed something obvious in their care. Dehydration and severe anemia is not something I would hope a competent ER would miss.
take your bill with you when you talk to the hospital as well as the chart from the second ER. You need to be able to prove your case.
Good luck! |
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~Lindy~
Catty smart aleck
PeaNut 89,450
June 2003
Posts: 17,476
Layouts: 40
Loc: Gone to Chemo with BethAnne.
| Posted: 3/1/2013 7:23:49 PM
Will you get a separate bill for the physician services? Most of our local EDs are staffed by contract physicians (in my state, the hospital cannot directly employ physicians).
It seems to me that you have a problem with the subsequent treatment, not the intake, not the diagnostic tests or the nursing services. The physician is who places the treatment orders following the dx.
If this is the case for your situation, that physician's bill is the one I would question. |
-Lindy
"It's not how you look but how you see." | |
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Scrapbrat1
Sue Pea
PeaNut 87,238
May 2003
Posts: 7,031
Layouts: 190
Loc: Dirtyland and Oilyland
| Posted: 3/1/2013 7:50:47 PM
You aren't complaining about the ER services you received, your complaint is that the ER doc misdiagnosed your DH. You are essentially alleging malpractice, and that is how you would have to pursue it. Since the ER doc is probably employed by the hospital, you would have to sue the hospital. |
Barbara
CKU-Indy -- March 2003
CKU-M, Salt Lake City -- August 2004 | |
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*Delphinium Twinkle*
I'm just a pea:)
PeaNut 163,613
August 2004
Posts: 68,356
Layouts: 236
Loc: *Sunny Southern California*
| Posted: 3/2/2013 1:40:06 AM
"My argument is the bill at the first e/r. They did not help. AT ALL. Can I fight this bill? Do I call the insurance company for help? Or do I start with the hospital?"
You can't fight that bill.
You took him. They saw him and treated him. Incorrectly, but still treated him.
You're responsible for the bill |
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