Ever had blood work done? Insurance covered it, right? But what happens when you are told somebody entered the wrong code, so you have to pay hundreds? It wasn’t solvable, which is why one South Florida woman called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
Ulyana is a swimming coach.
Ulyana Navarro: “I work with the little kids. I really enjoy working with them.”
Not only does Ulyana like coaching kids, she makes a splash as an instructor. Her two children are proof.
Ulyana Navarro: “The oldest son, he is in the national level. And my little guy, he is probably the top 100 in the country right now.”
The water is good to Ulyana. Some blood work has her sunk.
Ulyana Navarro: “So I went to my doctor’s office, and they sent me to do my blood work.”
If you have insurance like Ulyana, it usually covers most or all of the lab work, but not in this case.
Ulyana Navarro: “After a while, I received the bill for almost $300, and I said, ‘What happened? I have the insurance.’”
Ulyana called the lab to find out why she was being billed for a simple Vitamin D test.
Ulyana Navarro: “They said, ‘Well, the wrong code was being sent to us. Let’s say the code is 5678, and they put 5679 instead of the 8.”
Ulyana contacted her doctor’s office to try to straighten it out.
Ulyana Navarro: “They assured me that they sent the right code, everything is solved.”
But it wasn’t resolved, as Ulyana felt like she was swimming upstream trying to solve her problem.
Ulyana Navarro: “I email many times. I called many times, and I came in person many times, and nothing is done.”
Ulyana thought about paying the $294 bill, but decided no.
Ulyana Navarro: “We are already paying insurance, we are already doing what we have to do. So why would I have to pay for somebody’s mistake?”
The news got worse, as Ulyana got a letter from a collection agency demanding she pay the $294.
Ulyana Navarro: “My credit score is 820. So, my credit score go down.”
Clearly, the swim coach is frustrated.
Ulyana Navarro: “I’m just stuck. I’m stuck in the middle of the pool. There’s no way out.”
Or is there a way out, Howard?
Howard Finkelstein: “If the insurance company tells you the code for the blood work is not covered, contact your doctor’s office to correct it. Now, if the code is correct, the patient is responsible for the bill. But the doctor should tell you before the test that insurance won’t cover it, so you decide if you want the blood work done.”
I contacted the hospital where the doctor’s office is located. A Mount Sinai spokesperson couldn’t discuss Ulyana’s medical records with us. But it was explained to her.
Ulyana Navarro: “According to insurance, you need to have a pre-existing condition to do this kind of test.”
Ulyana didn’t have the condition, so the lab work wasn’t covered by insurance, but Mount Sinai was great.
A spokesperson wrote to us: “MSMC confirmed with Quest that the bill is being taken care of as an act of goodwill, and she will not receive any more statements.”
Just what Ulyana was hoping for when she called Help Me Howard.
Ulyana Navarro: “It took me over a year, and nothing was done. My problem got solved in less than two weeks. Mr. Patrick is a real magician.”
Ah, we just got lucky, Ulyana. Now, Ulyana needs to check her credit score, and if it was affected, she needs to let the credit bureaus know that the bill has been satisfied.
Finally, how do you know if it’s the right code for medical work? You have to depend on the doctor’s office, and before you get any procedure, make sure your insurance covers it.
Getting needled by someone? Tired of the bloody mess? Let us prescribe a solution to nurse you back to peacefulness.
With this Help Me Howard, I’m Patrick Fraser, 7News.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
Source:: News Miami – Fox News
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