Dealing With A Large COVID-19 Medical Bill?

Posted by Sarah Jones on May 13th, 2021

Even though Americans are allowed to take a free COVID-19 test since the approval of the law, but the law doesn’t offer coverage for the treatment of the virus. And we all know that medical services for COVID-19 can get pretty hefty and run into tens of thousands of dollars.

But thankfully, there are certain steps that you can take and understand your protection under the law to manage your treatment cost.

Getting tested for the virus

In March, The Families First Coronavirus Response Act was passed. As per this act, private health insurance plans along with Medicaid and Medicare are required to offer coverage for the testing of COVID-19 infection.

But, most plans cover the cost of the testing only if the patient has a referral from the doctor.

If you do not have any health insurance plan in place, then you can get tested for free at the community-based testing site. This site will help you locate a community-based testing center near you and gain information on where are the no-cost testing centers located in your state.

Getting treated for the virus

The cost of COVID-19 treatment will be based on various things. These things include:

• Whether you have a plan

• Type of plan you have

• Do you receive in-network or out-network service

• Length of the treatment

Private Insurance: Not all, but many large private health insurance plans covered the out-of-the-pocket costs of COVID-19 treatment for all members till the end of 2020. Some still continue to help with medical bills by offering a waiver in 2021 too. You can check the benefits offered by the large health insurance plan for COVID-19 treatment here.

But, make sure to talk directly with the provider for better details.

Medicare: People on Medicare plan that have long-term hospital stay owe daily copays, and these costs can be significant. The COVID-19 treatment outside the hospital is covered under Medicare Part B. As per this plan, there is a 20% coinsurance charge for nearly all services.

Medigap or Medicare Supplement Insurance can offer coverage of some or all of the cost-sharing expenses.

Private Medicare Advantage plans are different than traditional Medicare and often charge daily copays for emergency room services, ambulance rides, and hospital stays. But, as of now, nearly all of these plans are either waiving off or reducing these costs for COVID-19 treatment.

Affordable care act insurance: Sometimes also referred to as marketplace plans, the Affordable Care Act offers similar coverage for COVID-19 as any viral infection. With some plan, you may get additional benefits. So, check with your marketplace health plan to see what all benefits will be provided for the COVID-19 treatment.

What to do when you have large COVID-19 medical bills:

1. Inspect the bills: Whenever you are handed a bill, don’t just assume that all the information mention on it is true and genuine. Even doctors and hospitals can make mistakes that will result in you paying more than you actually should.

If possible, request the hospital to provide you an itemized bill that lists all the different services, medicines, and products utilized for the treatment. This way, if you think you have a surprise bill in your hand, then you can cross-check for any unnecessary services added to the list.

2. Ask for financial help: You can request the hospital to offer you financial help. Not-for-profit hospitals are needed to offer financial help to the patients that qualify. For-profits aren’t required to do the same, but some do provide the financial help.

Keep in mind; no hospital will offer such help upfront; you will require asking them for a bargain or a discount for a deal. Once they keep their plans in front of you, proceed to decide on what you can really afford monthly wise and then put together a monthly billing plan.

In case if you don’t qualify for any financial help, then you may get some discounts by paying the whole at once.

3. Negotiate by hiring an expert: If you think you have no solution, then go ahead and hire experts who can negotiate your high medical bills on your behalf. They will also work with the medical bill departments to make sure your claim and other credit bureaus related issue is resolved as per your satisfaction.

With the expert by your side, you no longer will require running around. They know whom to talk to and how to work with the intended person in the billing department to resolve your issue effortlessly.

Wrapping up

Dealing with large medical bills can be mentally frustrating. But, thankfully, there are sound ways of dealing with it effectively. Do your research and hire professionals like Claim Medic to gain proper assistance with exceptionally high bills.