Surprise medical bills

Patient advocates say they frequently hear from people who thought they didn’t need for Medicare because they had group health. That delay sometimes forces people to cover medical expenses themselves.

Federal law says Medicaid must cover out-of-state emergency care. But a Volusia County man got a five-figure bill after a Rapid City hospital declined to charge his state’s Medicaid program.

After leaving his job to launch his own business, an Illinois man opted for a six-month health insurance plan. When he needed a colonoscopy, he thought it would cover most of the bill. Then he learned his plan’s limited benefits would cost him plenty.

A man had friends drive him to the hospital after he was hit by a car. Doctors checked him out, then sent him by ambulance to a trauma center, which released him with no further treatment.

The ACA requires most insurance plans to cover preventive care, including many forms of contraception, without cost to patients — but not if they’re “grandfathered” plans, which predate the law.

After decades of unchecked mergers, health care is the land of giants, with huge medical systems monopolizing care in many cities, states, and even whole regions of the country.

Sometimes a simple phone call clears up a problem. Other times, reinforcements are necessary. Debt experts say patients should attack medical bills with a plan. Here are key steps to take.

After emergency surgery, an American expatriate now carries the baggage of a five-figure bill. Costs for medical care in the U.S. can be two to three times the rates in other developed countries.

Doctors rushed a pregnant Winter Haven woman to a surgeon in Coral Gables who charged thousands upfront just to see her. The case reveals a gap in medical billing protections for those with rare, specialized conditions.

A Pasco County mom tried to dispute an emergency room bill, but the hospital and collection agency refused to talk to her — because it was her child's name on the bill, not hers.