Parker, Colorado — A man in Parker with health insurance was shocked when he recently opened an invoice he received from a doctor for a telemedicine consultation.
Dustin Stewart planned to appoint a direct doctor to meet with his new primary care physician and review his medical history. Shortly before his appointment, Stewart was exposed to COVID-19, so he called the office and changed his schedule.
Stewart said the office provided a telemedicine visit on the original date and time when he called to make a new appointment.
“I said, it’s okay. Unless it changes the structure of the way I’m billed. My insurance is out-of-pocket. And they said,” No, you’re okay. ” Stewart remembered.
According to Stewart, the out-of-pocket cost is usually $ 20. However, after his telemedicine visit, he was charged more than $ 300.
“I laughed because I thought,’Well, there must be a mistake.’ My doctor is a great doctor, but that’s about $ 600 worth of a phone call,” Stewart said.
He said he called his insurance company, the doctor’s office, and the billing department of the office. He was told that the bill was reviewed and that it was correct. Stewart doesn’t understand how that is possible.
“I don’t think either my care provider or the billing department had a good review of how the invoice would be this number,” Stewart said.
Stewart uses a payment plan to pay off the invoice, but is worried that this situation is not unique to his personal experience.
“I can only imagine that this must be a small part of the population that happened, and I can imagine that there are other people in difficult situations where this can have a significant impact on their lives. I know, “said Stewart.
According to the Colorado National Center for Telemedicine Policy Resources, insurers do not have to pay for consultations through telemedicine. However, “the carrier must not limit or deny coverage just because the service is provided through telemedicine,” the policy states.
A UC Health official said it had nothing to do with the bill and that the bill came from CU Medicine.
CU Medicine has sent the following statement:
The UCHealth Primary Care Lone Tree facility is owned and operated by the University of Colorado Hospital, which is part of UCHealth. The facility is classified as an outpatient department of the hospital and patient consultation must be claimed as an outpatient visit, whether face-to-face or telemedicine. The health insurance benefit structure often depends on the service and location.
It is not possible to respond to patient-specific health or benefit information as it violates the privacy rights protected by HIPAA.
Health insurance benefit structures can vary by service, location, and often whether the patient is seen face-to-face or in telemedicine, so no further explanation can be provided at this time. can not.
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