A new poll conducted by the New York Times and the Kaiser Family Foundation found that, even though the number of insured Americans has increased in recent years, health insurance is still falling very short of preventing people from going into severe debt due to medical bills.
Specifically, approximately 20 percent of people under the age of 65 with health insurance reported still having problems paying their medical bills; 63 percent used up most or all of their savings to try and pay these bills; 42 percent had to take on another job, and many others had to move and/or resort to charity assisting them. Some have lost both their jobs and homes due to thousands of dollars they owe for medical and dental expenses. Many are now actively avoiding doctors, hospitals, and filling prescriptions in order to avoid additional bills and insurance disputes.
Why Is There Medical Debt And Insurance Disputes?
Why is this the case in the United States, but nowhere else? Arguably, this is, in part, due to the high cost of healthcare here. However, there has also been a shift in health insurance policies, specifically; a shift to requiring customers to pay a greater share of their bills out of pocket by increasing both deductibles and co-payments. To date, no law has barred insurance companies from haphazardly increasing the cost of deductibles.
The Choice between Paying Medical Bills and Eating
The new report released by the Kaiser Family Foundation has concluded that the impact has been major, affecting people’s ability to afford the basics, such as food. Although those without health insurance are still struggling to pay medical bills, the startling conclusion of the poll is that most of those struggling actually have health insurance. Thus, there has been a shift from the medical bankruptcy experienced by the uninsured to those insured by less generous health insurance.
The Cost of Out-of-Network Providers
Many people are also reporting “mistakenly” going to see a provider that they did not realize was out-of-network and getting stuck with a huge bill not covered by their insurance. Given that the survey found that both people earning less than $25,000 and more than $100,000 sought out charity or borrowed money from friends at a similar rate, the phenomenon cannot simply be explained as a matter of people not earning enough. There is something else going on here involving insurance companies.
Insurance Dispute Attorneys
One of the many practice areas that the attorneys at Harrell & Nowak focus on is insurance disputes. In doing so, we have collected millions in settlements and verdicts for our clients. If you feel you have been misrepresented or taken advantage of by an insurance company, contact us today for a free consultation so that we can get started helping you.