October 2011 issue of Freedom's Phoenix magazine - fr33aid

The BIG Medical Bill SCAM:
How it’s Done Over and Over Again
By Treg Loyden
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HERE is how it
works:
Hospital emergency
room:
1) First get all of the patient's info and various
people bringing them into the emergency room.
Create the Medical File.
2) Evaluate and Order Tests for the patient (err
Medical File)
3) Doctor evaluation. Administer needed care
or order still more tests (for the Medical File)
4) Release patient. Send Medical File to Medical
Coding.
5) Consolidate charges by tabulating all the code
numbers for anyone who touched or breathed
on the Medical File (by secret code book) over
to Billing
6) Match up the code numbers with the Billing
Code numbers. It is at this point that finally
one person knows the charges, but not ALL
the charges. Some report their codes to Billing
sooner than others.
7) Billing dept. Send out bills to the patient as
you consolidate charges. Hence, never will be
one total and complete bill sent to the patient.
More come in on the Medical File over time.
8) Billing starts the 90 day expectation of Payment.
9) 30 day no payment received prompts notice
of Government paid services instructing the
patient if they are having difficulty paying, to
please try to get on government care so they can
charge the appropriate government 'service'.
10) No payment received in 90 days, sell of
Medical Bill Invoice to 3rd party collections for
10% of face amount of total bill. Receive cash
payment. Close Medical File.
11) Collections peruses the Patient and has the
right to now collect the medical debt. Medical
debt is personal debt which a judgment can
be made against you and all your possessions.
If married, community property applies. Only
bankruptcy will stop collections from taking
your personal and real property.
++++++++++
So what is wrong with this picture? First, let’s
put in a real life example. You are 30, in good
health, but you have a sharp pain in your lower
left abdominal side. Despite aspirin, it continues
on for several hours. You fear it may be an
exploding appendicitis, which could kill you.
You go to the emergency room.
There you give your name, social security number,
address, and phone number for the Med-
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ical file. Thereafter, you are told to wait. You
are treated to a hard chair. In 10 minutes, if you
are very lucky (some waits are hours long), you
get admitted into see the emergency nurse. She
checks your vitals and asks standard questions:
“Where is the pain? What did you do? What
did you eat? Are you allergic to anything?” She
takes your age, weight, height, temperature and
passes the Medical File on for the Doctor.
The Doctor may not be the one to make the diagnosis,
but will evaluate further by ordering
medical tests to the Medical File: blood, urine,
sonogram, perhaps an IV, and then the stomach
surface digital exam (he touches your stomach)
– “Does this hurt?”
Then you wait, either back in the emergency
waiting room, or if your temperature is over 101,
you may get a bed or a chair near the nurses’
station. If you are cold, you may get a blanket.
If you are hungry, forget about it. If you are uncomfortable,
forget about it. Now you wait, and
wait, and wait. Depending when you entered
and what day it is, you can easily wait 9 hours
to "get your results back."
Then you see a doctor who does the diagnosis.
“Good news, no appendicitis. Constipation
probably. Let me give you an extra strength prescription
laxative that you will need to go to the
drug store and wait another couple hours to file.”
You pay $110 because "it’s a special laxative."
You go home, take the medicine, and sure
enough the pain goes away and you soon take
the biggest dump of your life. Wow! Glad that
was all it was. Glad it’s over.
HOLD ON. NOT OVER. You may be thinking,
“What could that horrific treatment at emergency
room cost me? I saw two doctors, took some
tests, was treated like cattle, certainly NOT
LIKE I AM AT THE HILTON IN VEGAS AS
AN HONORED GUEST.” By the way, "honored
guests are people who spend $10,000 a night."
Vegas treats you realllllly well, like a King! So
you may think, “I've got a couple thousand in
the bank. I'll be covered.”
Not! Your Medical File has made the rounds.
Anyone who breathed on it threw in their code
number. Their code number was sent to Billing
who looked up prices. Then comes your first bill
of _______. How many? You don't know. Nor
does the Hospital - yet.
14 days later, 1st bill: $3280.70. OUCH
4 days later, 2nd bill: $1896.43 Ouch!
8 days later, 3rd bill: $2398.99 Ouch!
12 days later, 4th bill: $4489.27 Ouch!
14 days later, the 5th and final bill: $3,398.22
14 days later, the 1st “Bill Is Due” reminder!
Continues on Page 28
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