How to Save Money When You Go To The Hospital

There's so much to worry about when you have to be in the hospital. Understandably, most people don't think about financial concerns at that time. With a little forethought, however, you can save by catching hospital errors and being proactive about your care.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Speak up! Sometimes we're so intimidated by doctors that we don't think to question anything. Ask what your doctor charges for an office visit, a hospital visit, and surgery costs. You can't check to see if any records are correct if you don't know what anything costs.
2. Know that every test done is not always necessary. Ask what each test is for and if you're told - 'we want to rule out so and so and if this test doesn't tell us anything, we'll move on to another' then ask if you can just have the test that will be more definitive and skip the first. Also, tell your doctor that you want a copy of your test results. Reviewing results together will help to make sure that nothing is overlooked.
3. Ask your doctor to have the results of all of your tests sent to the hospital. Often, hospitals will repeat every routine test that the doctor has just done because they don't have the recent test results that they should. Often when you are seen by a staff doctor making rounds instead of your own doctor, he will just order whatever is standard procedure-- unless you've made sure that those records are there.
4. Have an advocate if you're going to be unable to think clearly due to anesthesia, pain medications or for any other reason. Have this person keep track of how often your blood is drawn, how often meds are given - shots or pills, how often dressings are changed or any kind of therapy or treatment is performed. With a log, you can know for certain exactly what was done and what you should be paying for. If there's as error, you will be able to spot it immediately.
5. Ask if you can bring something from home. Many times you pay through the nose for something as simple as acetaminophen. My friend paid $5.00 per pill after she had her last child. If you bring your OTC drugs from home, with the permission of your doctor, you could save quite a bit. If you brought your own ice pack, hot pack, etc. it could really add up. Ask your doctor what you'll likely need in the way of OTC drugs and things you may already have. Since these items have no effect on his bill, he should be glad to help you.
6. Let the hospital know that you want an itemized bill before you leave. You can call the billing/financial office from your room or you can have that noted in your file when you check in. There's no way to check a bill that isn't itemized, so be sure to do this.
7. Know what common errors to look for. Charges for items past the time they were discontinued (breathing machines, IV meds, etc.); room charges that exceed the days you spent there or being charged for a private room when you didn't have one; charges for items like drugs that were returned to the pharmacy because they were not needed (pain meds for example that you refused); charges for the typical tests that were not performed because you brought test results with you. (Some blood work and diagnostic tests are always run for particular problems and the financial officer may just assume you should be charged for something because everyone else has been.) Keep in mind that the people who bill you have no idea what was really done while you were there and it is easy, because of that, to make mistakes that can cost you a great deal.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember to be proactive. Take responsibility for your own health care and don't assume every doctor is infallible. Ditto for clerical workers and nurses writing on your charts. Ask - you are paying a great deal of money for the services you are getting, so make sure you're in the know all the way.
• For any hospital stay, it is best to have someone who can stay with you in your room and act s an advocate. You will get much better care if they know that someone is watching everything being done.
• You cannot prove any errors in billing if you have not kept records of what went on during your hospital stay. If you cannot do it, make sure to have someone else present with you when you can.