It may surprise you that your doctor doesn’t accept your insurance. But you should know that you will have to pay out of pocket for expensive medical care if the doctor does not accept your insurance.
You are not the only one facing this problem. in fact, many doctors today opt out of working with health insurance companies altogether and require cash payments from patients.
Reading: Doctors who don’t accept insurance
It is important to understand why many doctors decline health insurance plans and require cash payments instead, as well as your options as a patient under the circumstances, including direct care from primary care physicians and other providers.
can primary care doctors refuse to take out insurance?
yes. Physicians are not required to accept health insurance plans or accept the rates that insurance companies choose to pay. The Affordable Care Act sought to improve access to health insurance, but it did not solve the problem of rising costs and lower reimbursements offered by some payers.
many choose not to work with private insurers or government payers like medicare and medicaid that offer lower reimbursements to doctors. instead, they can move to cash-only medical practices.
“It’s becoming more common lately. Insurance companies are denying claims and making it harder for doctors to accept patients on their plans by reducing reimbursements. As a result, many doctors are dropping plans,” says lily talakoub, md, faad , a board-certified dermatologist in mclean, virginia.
why don’t some doctors accept insurance?
doctors negotiate the price of treatment with health insurers. The health insurance company sets the rates it will pay to the doctor. insurance companies may also include quality metrics that doctors must meet in order to be fully reimbursed. Insurers set the rates, but that doesn’t mean the doctor has to accept these rates.
Lower reimbursements from insurers have led some doctors to stop accepting plans and coverage from those insurers.
But declining compensation isn’t the only reason many health care practices are cutting ties with insurance companies.
There is a lot of paperwork associated with insurance companies. every patient with insurance comes with a large amount of paperwork. Also, many insurance companies try to deny coverage at all times. Ultimately, this leads to hiring more staff to manage the paperwork or tackling the paperwork nightmare on your own.
See also: Cold Calling Scripts For Insurance That Work | iLife
When health insurers lower reimbursement rates, talakoub says insurance companies force doctors to see more patients, which is not good for patient care.
“The doctor’s office becomes a factory and the patients suffer,” Talakoub says. “Furthermore, insurers generally don’t approve drugs or tests that doctors recommend, which makes the administrative burden overwhelming for doctors when they try to appeal their decisions as advocates for their patients.”
direct primary care and cash-only medical practices are growing
With all the difficulties of dealing with insurance companies, more doctors won’t accept insurance.
of course someone has to foot the bill. when doctors decide to stop buying insurance, patients have to pay the bill, or at least those patients who choose to.
Physicians requesting cash payments effectively eliminate extensive insurance company paperwork requirements, which means less administrative burden for the physician and their staff.
Some offices charge patients a flat or reduced/sliding scale fee for office visits and treatment. others offer “concierge medicine,” in which patients pay a monthly, quarterly, or annual fee or advance for a predetermined number of services or visits.
Direct primary care is a type of program in which the patient and health care providers enter into a financial agreement. direct primary care removes health insurance from the equation. therefore, the provider does not file health insurance claims, but instead works directly with the patient through a monthly fee or membership fee.
The benefit of direct primary care is that you won’t have to deal with health insurance companies. however, you may also have to pay more for care since a plan no longer helps you pay for coverage.
what if a hospital doesn’t accept your insurance?
If a doctor or hospital doesn’t accept your health insurance, there are steps you can take…
Contact your insurance company. Contact your insurance company. You can explain the situation and request an appeal. sometimes the insurance company will agree to negotiate with your doctor.
but if the problem is that the doctor does not want to accept funds from an insurance company, you will have no choice but to pay cash or find another doctor.
See also: Is Burial Insurance Right For You? – Forbes Advisor
check your network coverage. “The services you need are most likely available in your network from an alternative physician or service provider in your area that accepts your insurance,” says Nick Schrader, an insurance agent with Texas-based General Insurance. In Houston. “If so, try seeing that doctor instead.”
Ask your doctor’s office if they will file your insurance claim. “If your doctor is out of your insurance network coverage, ask if they will file an out-of-network claim as a courtesy to you,” Talakoub says. “If not, ask if they will provide you with documentation that can help you file a claim yourself with the necessary documentation and paperwork attached.”
Ask for a reduced rate or flexible payment terms. If a doctor does not accept insurance, they may be willing to negotiate payment terms with the patient. you can get a discount for paying in advance or find flexible financing options if you ask at the front desk.
ask if the doctor offers concierge medicine options. Your health care provider may agree to provide treatment and services for a prepaid annual, monthly, or regular fee.
Consider switching insurance coverage. Your doctor may accept a new plan or policy with a different company. confirm with the provider which health insurance plans the practice accepts.
learn about payment assistance options. “Check to see if the office or hospital has financial assistance options that may reduce or eliminate your bill, based on your financial need, and determine if you’re eligible for it,” says Schrader. “if you qualify, you will probably have to pay something out of pocket, but very minimal.”
Go to an urgent care clinic instead. walk-in clinics that provide non-emergency services may charge much less than a private practice, hospital, or medical center.
what to do when your doctor doesn’t accept medicare
most doctors accept medicare. Only 1% of all physicians who are not pediatricians formally opted out of the Medicare program in 2020, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Medicare does not pay the same rate as private insurers. doctors who accept it are often only reimbursed about 80% of what private health insurance pays. this is one of the reasons some doctors don’t accept medicare.
but if you find out your health care provider doesn’t accept medicare, you have options. perhaps you could negotiate a discounted rate or sliding scale or see if the practice offers flexible financing options. As a last resort, be prepared to find another doctor who accepts Medicare. ask your doctor to refer you to a fellow practitioner who does.
frequently asked questions
sources
See also: How to write a letter to insurance company for claim
- Physician Acceptance of National Electronic Medical Record Survey Results of New Medicaid Patients
- High Cost of Healthcare May be Driving Direct Primary Care Membership