Opened a new bank account and got a christmas gift

[BuzzKillington]

of 1400 dollars worth of medical bills that were PAID went into collections and show unpaid. Merry ****in' christmas.

I've been on the phone for the last 4 hours getting the run around by different collection agencies and my insurance at the time. Fun stuff. :banghead:

[dr.walrus]

Hate to politicise this, but this problem doesn not exist in the UK . At all. Despite our commie bastard health system.

[Lothair]

Hate to politicise this, but this problem doesn not exist in the UK . At all. Despite our commie bastard health system.

This is more of an error type of thing than anything else. It doesn't matter what's being talked about, mistakes happen.

Has nothing to actually do with our different health care systems. Has to do with simple human error.

[dr.walrus]

Has nothing to actually do with our different health care systems. Has to do with simple human error.

Well, yeah, it does. I don't pay medical bills, so this is impossible. I can't financially suffer because of my medical system at all, it's just not possible.

[blaze15301]

Well, yeah, it does. I don't pay medical bills, so this is impossible. I can't financially suffer because of my medical system at all, it's just not possible.

why is it every time your in a thread you find it necessary to argue and brag about what you or your country has or does?

not trying to start a argument but just making a observation.


buzz if you let eh bills go for 7 years they dissapear. from what ive herd and under stand tho it dosetn affect your credit score to much. only when you go to get a house but they dont really look at medical.

[TheGreatSatan]

Other countries just have tons of taxes and their governments are still in debt because of it. Makes you wonder why idiot Democrats would want that here.....

[Airbozo]

of 1400 dollars worth of medical bills that were PAID went into collections and show unpaid. Merry ****in' christmas.

I've been on the phone for the last 4 hours getting the run around by different collection agencies and my insurance at the time. Fun stuff. :banghead:

Persevere. It will work out. I had a similar issue many years ago to the tune of $20k and got it taken care of after 6 months... It turned out to be a typo made by the Dr's office.


Other countries just have tons of taxes and their governments are still in debt because of it. Makes you wonder why idiot Democrats would want that here.....

Too true. I would rather pay out of pocket for great health care than to be taxed to death and suffer through less than adequate care.

[dr.walrus]

why is it every time your in a thread you find it necessary to argue and brag about what you or your country has or does?


Yesterday was a really bad day. I'm sorry.

I do gt upset by the idea of people forgoing medical care because they're poor, or ending up with a life's worth of bills. It's not really about the UK - France is another example of an excellent public run health system that doesn't rely on the private sector.

I find myself increasingly frustrated that America is rejecting the idea of healthcare reforms; I simply don't accept that the current system works properly. In both the UK and France the taxpayers' burden is actually a smaller percentage of GDP than the USA.

Sorry for cluttering your thread.

[diluzio91]

I find myself increasingly frustrated that America is rejecting the idea of healthcare reforms; I simply don't accept that the current system works properly. In both the UK and France the taxpayers' burden is actually a smaller percentage of GDP than the USA.

Sorry for cluttering your thread.

I agree with the need for a reform, Its just that at this juncture all the reforms that have been voted on aren't as comprehensive as what European countries have. (please note, i dont pay a whole lot of attention to this at the moment.)

[blueonblack]

of 1400 dollars worth of medical bills that were PAID went into collections and show unpaid. Merry ****in' christmas.


I've been through something similar and I feel your pain. If they were paid it should work out. Not that that makes your life any easier, but long-term it should be all right.


Hate to politicise this...

No you don't. :)

(Note the smile there and don't go all defensive on me.)

[Airbozo]

Yesterday was a really bad day. I'm sorry.

I do gt upset by the idea of people forgoing medical care because they're poor, or ending up with a life's worth of bills. It's not really about the UK - France is another example of an excellent public run health system that doesn't rely on the private sector.

I find myself increasingly frustrated that America is rejecting the idea of healthcare reforms; I simply don't accept that the current system works properly. In both the UK and France the taxpayers' burden is actually a smaller percentage of GDP than the USA.

Sorry for cluttering your thread.

What most people in other countries don't understand (and a lot of people in this country) is that there is a health care system in place for the poor. No one gets denied health care if they show up at the emergency room. Medicare (and some states have their own version that compliments the federal system) will even pay for preventative care or normal office visits. The problem is getting everyone to actually use the system. Sure it is not perfect and yes our health care system DOES need reform.

The main thing that would help, is for the politicians and lobbyists be required to participate in any plan they vote into effect. The way it is now, politicians at the federal level get the best health care in the world with no out of pocket expenses paid for by the US taxpayer.

BTW, what is your tax rate Dr?

Buzz, Do you have the confirmation of the paid amount? A simple fax of that document may help. In my case, my primary refused to pay due to a typo and it caused all kinds of problems. I even had to force the billing company to pay to clean up my credit record. If the company sent your bills to collection, make sure that it did not get reported to the credit agencies, or your score will go down. If it did, make sure they clean it up (they are required to by law if there is a mistake).

Good luck!

[BuzzKillington]

I had confirmation numbers of the bills being paid and they said they're not theirs! They were in collections when I paid them off because at the time I was literally making 50 hours a week at work. My mom wrote me a check to pay them off thankfully since the program the hospital assured that I could get help from denied me unless I could get a parent to co-sign but neither of my parents wanted to be tied into my debts. lol

My old insurance company is calling the hospital and collection agencies to help track down the info and the lady said she may be able to get them waved and taken off my credit.

The only reason I found out about them is because for w/e reason they did a credit check when I opened a new checking account at my new bank... I've checked my credit report online and assumed they were on my record because they went to collections before being paid, not because they supposedly were never paid.

If worst comes to worst, I'll pay them again after the holidays. I actually have an interview today for Fedex so I'm crossing my fingers there's a way I can work it around my schedule as a second job.

[dr.walrus]

What most people in other countries don't understand (and a lot of people in this country) is that there is a health care system in place for the poor. No one gets denied health care if they show up at the emergency room. Medicare (and some states have their own version that compliments the federal system) will even pay for preventative care or normal office visits. The problem is getting everyone to actually use the system. Sure it is not perfect and yes our health care system DOES need reform.

The main thing that would help, is for the politicians and lobbyists be required to participate in any plan they vote into effect. The way it is now, politicians at the federal level get the best health care in the world with no out of pocket expenses paid for by the US taxpayer.

BTW, what is your tax rate Dr?


At the minute, I work part time (2 days a week while I'm at uni). For this year, I'll be paying less than 5%. I've paid much higher; I've lived below the poverty line too and paid 0% then.

What I don't get is this:

I need to go to the doctor. I go to the doctor. I need hospital treatment. I go to hospital. I need followup treatment. I get follow up treatment. I pay for it from my taxes. It's run and regulated by the government.

Why is a privatised system better than that? It's cheaper out the taxpayers' pocket.

[dr.walrus]

No you don't. :)

(Note the smile there and don't go all defensive on me.)

Actually, you got a big grin out of me with that. You're right.

[Lothair]

Too true. I would rather pay out of pocket for great health care than to be taxed to death and suffer through less than adequate care.

That's ridiculous.

They aren't "taxed to death". They are actually in better health per capita than we are and they still make about as much as we do. Last I checked, we have more poor than most other modern countries too.

They have more than adequate care, you are always in great hands. You want to know a secret? The only people who actually benefit from our "best in the world doctors" are the top 10%ish percent and wealthy foreigners who want the best in the world, so the travel here. Unless you're quite wealthy, you've had the same QoS as anyone else in the world.

Furthermore, everyone gets taken care of whereas here in our country, only those who can afford it get taken care of and/or people who go through with it anyways have to then deal with life-long debt.

FYI - In this country that you apparently prefer, only 30% have adequate insurance, 60% have inadequate and 10% don't have anything at all. Glad youre enjoying it.

Also, we have considerably more debt than they do.

[knowledgegranted]

At the minute, I work part time (2 days a week while I'm at uni). For this year, I'll be paying less than 5%. I've paid much higher; I've lived below the poverty line too and paid 0% then.

What I don't get is this:

I need to go to the doctor. I go to the doctor. I need hospital treatment. I go to hospital. I need followup treatment. I get follow up treatment. I pay for it from my taxes. It's run and regulated by the government.

Why is a privatised system better than that? It's cheaper out the taxpayers' pocket.

Not really, if you just follow simple things, such as washing your hands. I don't think my mother has been sick or hurt in 10 years, she does these weird things where she washes her hands 3 times a day; yes I think it's weird to but it seems to work. She hasn't gone to the doctor either. So in reality, paying taxes for her healthcare is almost useless.

HOWEVER, I do believe in 'for the good of the whole,' paying taxes so someone who was less fortunate could receive the same health care as I, is totally worth it. Disagree if you wish, that's just how I feel.

[Airbozo]

That's ridiculous.

They aren't "taxed to death". They are actually in better health per capita than we are and they still make about as much as we do. Last I checked, we have more poor than most other modern countries too.

They have more than adequate care, you are always in great hands. You want to know a secret? The only people who actually benefit from our "best in the world doctors" are the top 10%ish percent and wealthy foreigners who want the best in the world, so the travel here. Unless you're quite wealthy, you've had the same QoS as anyone else in the world.

Furthermore, everyone gets taken care of whereas here in our country, only those who can afford it get taken care of and/or people who go through with it anyways have to then deal with life-long debt.

FYI - In this country that you apparently prefer, only 30% have adequate insurance, 60% have inadequate and 10% don't have anything at all. Glad youre enjoying it.

Also, we have considerably more debt than they do.


The taxes in the UK are way more than the US and their debt is also pretty huge, even worse in some countries than the US (just ask Greece). Look at the situation in the UK as well. The country is so broke they are raising the tuition for college. This is on top of the huge tax rate (as much as 50%) and the VAT (~28%). The US is running ~$30k per-capita debt and the UK is ~$27k. But if you look at the debt as a percentage of the GDP, the US is ~63% and the UK is over 76%.

Being poor has nothing to do with health care. That is a separate issue all together. That 10% number you post is misleading. Just because you have no insurance does not mean you can't get health care. Medicare exists for a reason. I come from a very poor family and know for a fact that we got our health needs met every time with no issues and no one in my family is in debt from it. In fact most of the people suffering huge medical bills were not poor in the first place, although they may be now. That is where I think the problems lie and agree that something needs to be done to fix it. The first place to start is reforming the laws to prevent astronomical monetary awards for simple mistakes.

My brother in law is from London and is making way more money here than when he was working the same job in the UK. He prefers the health care system here and has told me repeatedly his care is much better than he was getting in the UK.

I do enjoy my health care. I work hard to earn the money to pay extra for a PPO for MY convenience. I also pay extra for my future health care needs when I can no longer work as much as I do. I am also not wealthy.

And why would I not prefer my own country?

[Airbozo]

At the minute, I work part time (2 days a week while I'm at uni). For this year, I'll be paying less than 5%. I've paid much higher; I've lived below the poverty line too and paid 0% then.

What I don't get is this:

I need to go to the doctor. I go to the doctor. I need hospital treatment. I go to hospital. I need followup treatment. I get follow up treatment. I pay for it from my taxes. It's run and regulated by the government.

Why is a privatised system better than that? It's cheaper out the taxpayers' pocket.

About what I thought for taxes depending on income. When I was struggling many years ago, I had no job, no insurance and I was able to go to the Dr., have surgery, all the follow up visits and prescriptions. I only had to pay a small fee if anything at all. Since then I am more gainfully employed and am happy that I have a PPO, and also happy that I am able to pay into the medicare system through my taxes so those services are there for those that need them. I am not in the highest tax bracket, but I pay on average 20%. My costs for health care are more expensive, but even considering my premiums, my tax rate is still no where near what my counterpart in the UK would pay.

[dr.walrus]

Not really, if you just follow simple things, such as washing your hands.

Is that a joke? Really? Do you think that's funny?

[Luke122]

Is there a smiley face that walks in, and then walks out? I wanted to comment at the beginning, but after reading the rest of this thread, I'm just going to limit my comments to what you see here.

...and I'm out.

[Snowman]

Going through the same thing, just got a bill from the dentist for something that got pre-approved by our insurance and then declined when they went to bill it. Also fighting medical bills that our insurance declined to cover because it was from an auto accident even though it was reported as much at the hospital.. I scream conspiracy but thats mainly because the A-HOLE that owned the flower garden that my wife destroyed with a car cared more about his flower garden and having it replaced at a sum that cost more than blue book on the car. He has since also had a bigger and better flower garden put in by illegal immigrant workers as well as a new roof on both his house and outbuildings. When I offered to help he said he was a proud person and unless I was a professional landscaper (illegal immigrant?) he was not interested in my offer.

I diverge from the main point here. Our healthcare system is screwed but requiring coverage of families of a certain income is like other programs in existence now that don't stop to look at the cost of living or the cost of living is from a census 20 years ago. There are huge issues with the proposed plan, and no healthcare system in the world is perfect even if you don't pay for it directly.