Can you negotiate a hospital bill?

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski FWIW the 20% I mentioned getting regularly from our local hospital is 20% off the insurance company negotiated rate, not the rack rate.

We had a small bill come in while we were away on vacation. The hospital's rack rate for the test was $216 and negotiated discount was $49 so the bill the hospital sent was for $167. A $17 discount for a 2 minute call - sweet! I called the hospital billing office and asked if they still offered an additional discount for immediate payment. The CSR asked for the reference number, looked up the bill and offered me a 10% discount. I put it on my Discover card and got an additional 2%.

I think for larger bills they will offer a bigger discount.

[EastWest Gal]

Our hospital gives discounts all the time. I would definitely try. I also have found questionable and blatantly over billing almost every time I've looked.

Example: my son was billed a critical care fee by the ER doctor for a broken arm. The hospital also up coded their ER charge due to administration of one Tylenol with codeine pill. I successfully challenged the doctor fee, not the ER fee.

Look at the bill and consider challenging the items line by line. You're likely to save some bucks. Be nice but persistent!