What to do before and after receiving a cancer treatment bill
Cancer is overwhelming in and of itself, whether its you, a loved one or a family member dealing with a cancer diagnosis. Add the financial cost of cancer care to the mix, and it’s easy to feel helpless. But it’s important to remember that there are concrete steps you, your family or your caregivers can take to manage the situation.
Here are some great tips from Caitlin Donovan, Director of Outreach and Public Affairs at the National Patient Advocate Foundation, about what to do before and after receiving a cancer treatment bill.
Before you receive a cancer treatment bill
Getting a high medical bill after cancer treatment can change your life. Expensive health insurance bills, especially those that end in collections, can affect a patient’s quality of life and change their ability to get a job, qualify for a mortgage, pay their mortgage or even get future health care.
Whether you need life saving treatment for a serious condition like breast cancer, leukemia or lymphoma, or ongoing oncology care at a hospital or medical center, it is crucial that all cancer patients know they have rights and options if a catastrophic bill arrives for them.
Use your health savings account
If you have a health savings account (HSA), continue to place money into it. Most recent policy proposals expand the use of HSAs, so this may be a great benefit for you when you’re working out how to pay for your cancer care.
Shop around for insurance that best fits your needs
Shop, shop, shop for your health insurance. Hopefully there are multiple health insurance plans available in your area, and if so, make sure to check not just your monthly premium, but also your copay and coinsurance rate.
If you can, make sure any preferred doctors are in-network, and check on their drug coverage, if you have pre-existing prescriptions. Checking for all these insurance coverage rates may take time–and a lot of phone calls–but it will save you time and money in the long term.
Look for low cost prescriptions
Check different pharmacies to see who offers the best price for your prescription. If you are on a low income, the manufacturer may have a program to help you access that medication. It never hurts to ask for help.
Try to stay in your insurance’s network
Make sure you know the extent of your health coverage and try to stay inside of your network of approved health care providers for any treatment and follow-up appointments. You will have the lowest out-of-pocket rate if you do not stray to an out-of-network provider.
Go to your primary care physician first
Stick with your primary care physician when first discussing your cancer care, making a treatment plan and finding out about how the cancer treatment may affect you, such as any side effects to prepare for. They may be able to help, and your costs will be lower than a visit to a specialist.
Ask about financial assistance opportunities
Hospitals in particular may have programs to help you if you are faced with a large bill you may not be able to pay. There are also organizations, some disease-specific, that offer financial assistance and scholarship programs. You can also see if you qualify for medicaid.
After you receive a cancer treatment bill
Take time to review each bill
Review all the bills carefully. About half of all medical bills have errors in them, which could result in a lowered bill when adjusted. Check to make sure that you are not being billed for services you didn’t have, drugs you didn’t take or facilities you did not use.
Get all of your billing codes
Make sure to get the billing codes. Often bills will just have a general dollar amount on them but you need to ask to get an itemized bill. You can’t review the bill properly if you don’t have all the information.
Don’t be afraid to appeal your insurer’s decisions
Appeal any decisions by your insurer to not pay and double check that the treatment definitely isn’t included in your insurance coverage. It may take a lot of time—even over a year—to negotiate but it can work.
Negotiate out-of-pocket costs with the hospital
Once the insurer’s part is final, try to negotiate your own out-of-pocket costs directly with the hospital. For instance, you can ask if they will accept the Medicare rate.
Ask about hospital financial assistance programs
Ask for financial assistance directly from the hospital. Many hospitals have programs to help patients access financial assistance, but often they won’t tell you unless you ask.
If you don’t qualify for the hospital’s financial assistance program, ask for them to refer you to an outside program. There are many programs that are set up specifically to help patients in financial difficulties.
Set up a payment schedule
Ask to set up a payment schedule. Hospitals want to get paid, so if you’re willing to pay them, they will happily work with you and may be able to reduce your bill if you’re able to make an upfront payment.
Start an online fundraiser
Explore crowdfunding with a fundraising plaftorm like GoFundMe, which can help offset your costs. GoFundMe does not charge registration fees and you can begin withdrawing funds as soon as you start receiving donations.
Tap into your cancer community to help share your crowdfunder with their networks. Any additional money can be donated to cancer research or nonprofit organizations like the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, which advocates for public policies to reduce the cancer burden for everyone.
Seek financial help from other organizations
Find a professional. Charitable and for-profit patient advocacy organizations exist to specifically help patients with high medical bills. If your bill is very high, it may be worth using one. If it’s very high, think about a lawyer.
Check with your state’s laws about balance billing
Know your rights. Certain states have laws against balance billing, in which a provider bills a patient for the balance left over after they are paid by the insurance company. If this type of surprise billing happens to you, always check to see if you legally have to pay it.
Get help with cancer treatment costs today
Need more help? Try using the National Patient Advocate Foundation’s resources. Users plug in their age, gender, location, diagnosis and what they’re looking for, and the app will find national and local resources for that issue. It’s also possible to call some of the programs straight from the app.
For additional information, see our posts Trusted Financial Help for Cancer Patients, Clinical Trials for Cancer Patients, and How to Pay for Expensive Medical Treatments.