Bills, Bills, Bills

It seems as though we've been flooded with bills lately for doctors visits for ALL 5 of us and the birth of Micaiah.  It's a little overwhelming but I try my very best to keep up with all the figures to make sure we aren't overpaying or duplicating a payment which has already been paid by our insurance, which so commonly happens.

Today, as I was trying to get caught up on some bill paying after being out of town, I came across 3 separate hospital bills.  

I pulled out my pile of "explanation of benefits" from our insurance company and cross-referenced all the figures to make sure they matched up.  You know, I used to just throw those things away or just file them away, unopened, but I've since learned my lesson.  

One of the bills that I had received did not have an explanation of benefits to go with it so I called them up and they hadn't even submitted the claim.  She said "We do the hearing test in the hospital for newborns and we never get insurance paperwork while we are in there."  Yes, you read that correctly, they NEVER even get paperwork in the hospital while they are in there, it is up to us to make sure we call them, give them our information, and then ask them to file it with our insurance.  If we don't, then we are stuck paying in full without even knowing it for something that is probably covered by our insurance.  That one call may potentially save us a couple hundred dollars.

The other 2 bills had those explanation of benefits to go along with them and the amounts were correct.  Here is what I do with each bill, large or small.  I call and say "Yes, my name is Tasha Via and I just received a bill in the mail.  I was wondering if you could check my account for me to see if I am eligible for any additional discounts if I am willing to pay in full today."  1 of the bills didn't qualify, but 1 did.  In fact they gave me a 20% discount off of my total which saved us about $100!

So, make sure you are opening those papers from your insurance and calling about every bill.  It is SO worth it.  Sometimes you may only save a few dollars but every little bit helps=)