(no subject)

[commotiocordis]

Oh, and by the by. Dentistry insurance problems? Solved. Or at least, I've identified the problems. Getting our money back is a different story. Turns out the statements that dentist one (two) had sent haven't been updated at all since they sent a new (5 months late and frakked up, resulting in, as it stands, us being billed for two co-pays for the same consultation visit) version of the first appointment's billing to the insurance (originally, they only billed for one of the four billable bits from that day and had tacked on the fees for the rest onto our account, when--if they had been billed--they would have been covered by the insurance) when we originally had been being billed for the entire thing. That knocks off a good hundred or so that the dentist's billing company's weird statement had us down for. Plus she billed me twice for the same tooth (which may or may not stick, as it was the three fillings she started and then the root canal that she ended up doing on it--still, fillings never completed, tooth billed for two procedures, thus I'd call that insurance fraud), one of said billings being for the root canal which we were told we wouldn't have to pay for, etc., etc.

All mathed out, if the root canal charge is withdrawn and the double copay fixed, just counting the "estimated fees" we've already paid for everything, she owes us back $86.50. Take out the getting billed for the three fillings that never happened and turned into the root canal from hell, that goes up to $123.70 in cashy money.

Billing from the endodontist is much, much less complicated. I don't remember exactly how much they said we've got left to pay, but I know it's nowhere near $100 off of what it should be, math-wise. (I think there might be an odd $30, but I'll have to check the balance on that next time I go--which is the really frustrating aspect of it all: not until January 3rd. I thought this was a two visit maximum to the new guy, but January'll be #4.)

Though here's the question that my parents say the answer should be no to, but I'm more skeptical. If the dentist bills for outrageous amounts of money, and the insurance that they're in-network for will only accept a slightly more reasonable amount to cover (or cover 70% of or whatever), do I have to cover not only the 30% left of what the insurance recognizes but also the difference between what was billed and what the insurance will acknowledge? Because then all my maths are off. That doesn't seem right at all, but if one were to just go by the statements that dentist one (two) [Ahh, the drill-breaker. You know who I mean.], that's very much what one would think looking at the numbers they're saying I have to pay.

Ahh, book I read most of for that economics term paper. Thank you, sir. I would not be as skeptical of this insurance mess (though it's obviously still a mess and would have gotten figured out eventually even if I didn't go all "I'm putting off doing my AII stuff, let me spend a couple of hours comparing forms, looking up coverages, and making spreadsheets!" because it's too much money to let fly) if I hadn't read about all the crap that gets pulled and that you're never supposed to go with what the billing company throws at you the first time around because it's more likely than not incorrect.

Comments

[rainbowjumpsuit.livejournal.com]

I am seriously scared of going to the dentist next Wednesday. They have to like drill into the sinus cavity bone thingy in my head, and cut out two teeth. And I'm gonna be awake for the whole damn thing.

[crashcart9.livejournal.com]

Holy shit. Drilling into the bone up near important things like cranial nerves and sinuses AND BRAIN scares me. I'm very much not looking forward to having to have my wisdom teeth out, if that ends up happening, for that reason.

Good luck, bb!