Negotiate medical bills

22 Aug 2023 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:01

In this instructional video, the speaker addresses the common problem of large medical debt and outlines a clear, actionable process for negotiating medical bills. The core advice emphasizes acting early—don’t immediately pay the bill, as there is time before credit reporting. Viewers are instructed to request an itemized statement, scrutinize it for common errors (such as duplicate charges or services never rendered), and contact the billing office to dispute any discrepancies. The speaker notes that up to 80% of medical bills contain mistakes, and that billing staff often correct errors once they are highlighted. To strengthen negotiations, the video recommends using external pricing tools like the Healthcare Blue Book to benchmark typical costs for procedures. Overall, the video serves as a concise guide for consumers to lower their medical expenses through proactive negotiation tactics.

Chapters

Half of you listening to me right now have some kind of medical debt. Everyone listening to me is likely to get some kind of large medical bill. When that happens, don't just get out your credit card and pay for it. Negotiate that bill. You're going to need this information at some point, so save this video. Here's the main thing to remember: you've got to start early. When you get that big bill in the mail, don't immediately pull out your credit card and just see what happens. It'll be quite a while before you get reported to any credit agency, so you've got time to negotiate. Next, make sure you're working from an itemized bill. If you don't have an itemized bill, call and ask for one. They have to give it to you. As much as 80% of all medical bills have some kind of errors in them. First thing you look for, the easiest thing, is duplicate charges, just getting charged twice for the same thing. Look for charges for services you never received. Call the billing office and ask about anything that looks suspect. Once the billing office starts looking at it with you, sometimes they find errors on their own. Sites like the Healthcare Blue Book can help you determine what the usual charge is for various services. If you can find