A sad but true story about medical billing.
And the doctor said:
“I have nothing to do with this.”
This story begins with a question:
What’s the real price of an MRI?
The answer reads like an English murder mystery.
It starts and ends with a doctor that I never met.
After being diagnosed by an audiologist and the physician assistant, I was told that the doctor, (who I never met) wanted to schedule an MRI.
I said to the physician assistant, “That’s fine, but I am a cancer survivor, and consequently, I only have a major medical insurance policy with a $5,500 annual deductible.” My insurance is of little help with this type of procedure. So, if it’s not a problem, I’d rather not use my insurance and just write you one check today.
The PA, who was very nice said, “I don’t know exactly what the cost is going to be. You will need to check with our billing staff.”
I checked.
I tried to write a check. They did not want a check. They wanted my insurance card.
Three requests for my insurance card and twenty minutes later, I was told that they would check back with me later in the day.
Driving home, I had two phone calls from OU Physicians asking me for my insurance card so that they could schedule my MRI.
I kept telling them. “I want to write you one check for the entire procedure”. I am choosing not to use my insurance card. My assumption was that they’d like the idea of getting paid immediately with a check.
Boy was I wrong.
With the help of Google, and a few friends, I learned the price range of $2,600 to $1,600 was the cost for this type of MRI. This seemed like good information to have.
Three days later, a very nice lady called me from OU Physicians.
I thought it was to schedule my MRI. It was not. It was to give me a set of detailed and very complicated instructions on exactly how to pay for my MRI. (A credit default swap from Goldman Sachs doesn’t have this much complexity).
I was told that once the check clears, then they can schedule my MRI.
They said, “Make the check out for $688.00”.
I was stunned. I said, are you sure? She said, yes. I said, “Let me be VERY clear, I am only going to write you one check for the full procedure. I don’t want additional bills coming in from 10 different doctors and departments. I want to write one check and be paid in full. Is this $688.00 for EVERYTHYING? Again, she said, yes.
I had a strange feeling of glee wash over me. Did I do a better job of negotiating than my insurance company? Did I uncover the true price of an MRI? I walked over to the bank, paid $3.00 for a cashiers check because my personal check wouldn’t do it, and sent my check off with its very specific instructions to OU Physicians.
My check cleared, and a month later I walked back into OU Physicians for my MRI.
“We need your insurance card?” I explained that I had already paid. Stunned, the lady at the front desk looks at me and says, “You don’t look like a self pay type. Let me go talk to my supervisor”. In a brisk manner, she struts back, looks me straight in the eye and says, “I guess you are OK, please have a seat.”
My medial problem wasn’t resolved, but the MRI ruled out cancer.
The story should end there. It doesn’t.
A month later, I receive a bill from the OU Physicians radiology department for $559.00 for their portion of the MRI.
I was stunned.
How many times did I tell EVERYONE, that I wanted to write one check and one check only?
My requests were repetitive and crystal clear.
I called the doctors office and inquired about this new bill. They quickly say, “Oh, that’s not our bill. Let me get you in touch with the correct department”. I then speak with the so called, “Correct department”. They tell me, Sir, you owe us $559.00”.
I quickly realized that trying to explain to these snapping turtles on speed what had happened wasn’t going to do any good.
Repeatedly, I contacted the doctor’s office and asked them to look into this problem. I thought it’s the least they could do since they didn’t solve my medical problem but still got paid. Below is the last bit of communications that I received from the doctor who I never met but prescribed the MRI.
“Greg;
I have nothing to do with this. I have sent this on to the people who take care of these issues.
Kind Regard,
Dr. Berryhill “
And in those seven words the doctor summed up the problem perfectly.
I have nothing to do with this.
My experience demonstrated to me that true price discovery in the medical business for an individual paying with a check, is virtually impossible.
It is obvious that the medical community has learned from Enron, Goldman Sachs, and British Petroleum that the, “I have nothing to do with this” defense works really well when you can hide behind full disclosure and fine print.
If I would have been quoted, $1,247.00, I would have paid that amount no questions asked.
I was not.
I now know that collectively the system can quote a price if you bring an insurance card, but no single person or component in the system knows the real price when you bring a check.
Mystery Solved?
What would Hippocrates say about this?
Health care billing is nothing more than a massive complexity machine that’s medically legal, but morally bankrupt. And the doctor said:
I have nothing to do with this.
In the health care business, I’ve learned that real price discovery and any true incentive to reduce medical costs seem to be on perpetual vacation.
It would be nice if OU Physicians and Dr. Berryhill acknowledged their error and dismissed this bill.
Unfortunately, my hunch is that they’ll just say:
I have nothing to do with this.
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