“If a patient refuses to pay their bill due to a high deductible, is it possible to request the insurance company (i.e. Anthem) to delete the claim? That way, the patient will still be responsible for paying their deductible amount elsewhere.”
I really have a problem with this thought process. So, the physician provides a service to a patient. Unfortunately the patient has a health insurance policy with a high deductible. The physician then appropriately submits the claim to the patient’s health insurance carrier for reimbursement. AFTER THE FACT, based upon the premise that due to the patient’s high deductible, the physician would like to request the insurance company to delete the claim so that the next physician that the patient sees for any type of medical service will of course, need to collect the balance due for the service(s) rendered that were applied to the patient’s deductible.
The problem is, what about the service that was provided to the patient by physician #1? Obviously, the service was provided. If it was not provided, there would not be a claim submitted that the physician would like to be deleted. My question now is: Was the patient treated for free or perhaps was a cash arrangement made with the patient that would cost them less out of pocket then the submitted claim that was applied to the deductible? Either way, this is truly inappropriate.
This is my opinion.
Michael G. Warshaw, DPM, CPC
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