Advice on lowering medical bills

[Rockinrobyn1]

Hi there!

I'm 22 years old and currently drowning in medical debt.
The past year and a half have been the worst of my life. I have never been so sick. I have been on unpaid medical leave from my job for 2 months, and am finally on paid medical leave - but am still not making much. I am insured, and have attempted to receive financial assistance from many hospitals but have been told I "make too much"... Which is funny, seeing as I can't even pay my utiliy bill.

I was thinking of trying to write the hospitals and collection agencies and ask them to lower my bill. Does anyone ha e any advice for me? I've gone through major depression and anxiety (my doctor has had to treat me because I was having so many daily panic attacks) from my debt and it is killing my credit. Should I tell them this? Should I list my current bills (rent, utilities ext.) And show them I can't even afford that? Please help! My parents have awful credit and have never attempted to fix it so I cannot even turn to them.

[TheKayla]

Can you organize and list your entire budget, including your medical bills? I don't have much experience in how you could negotiate lower bills, but if you can alter your budget to make ends meet with the current bills, that will allow for your medical debt to not be delayed any longer, which would be the best option. For most people, there are always ways to make a better budget, it just takes a bit of dedication, a new outlook/attitude, and some work adjusting. Given your current health, are you able to take on any more work/different work to increase your income?

[hamchan]

I went through a very similar situation around the same age and I wound up filing for bankruptcy. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

[Rockinrobyn1]

Since I'm underworkmans comp, I cannot work anywhere else if I want to continue to receive treatment from their doctors.
I've tried my hardest to organize my finances with hope that it would help, but sadly, there is really nothing I can budget. I only spend money on my apartment, utilities, car (and I'm already behind on getting it fixed), and groceries. And I have to compromise groceries and eat ramen most of the time because I don't have enough in my account after I've spent on everything before that.
I really am stuck... To pay off medical bills, I would have to compromise my utilities. To even go on a payment plan for most of these bills, I have to put $75-150 down. And there's so many... How am I suppose to do that?

How would I go about filing bankrupcey?

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Since I'm underworkmans comp, I cannot work anywhere else if I want to continue to receive treatment from their doctors.
I've tried my hardest to organize my finances with hope that it would help, but sadly, there is really nothing I can budget. I only spend money on my apartment, utilities, car (and I'm already behind on getting it fixed), and groceries. And I have to compromise groceries and eat ramen most of the time because I don't have enough in my account after I've spent on everything before that.
I really am stuck... To pay off medical bills, I would have to compromise my utilities. To even go on a payment plan for most of these bills, I have to put $75-150 down. And there's so many... How am I suppose to do that?

How would I go about filing bankrupcey?

First step: find a lawyer. I think that showing your creditors that you are seriously considering bankruptcy might scare them into working with you.

[hamchan]

Since I'm underworkmans comp, I cannot work anywhere else if I want to continue to receive treatment from their doctors.
I've tried my hardest to organize my finances with hope that it would help, but sadly, there is really nothing I can budget. I only spend money on my apartment, utilities, car (and I'm already behind on getting it fixed), and groceries. And I have to compromise groceries and eat ramen most of the time because I don't have enough in my account after I've spent on everything before that.
I really am stuck... To pay off medical bills, I would have to compromise my utilities. To even go on a payment plan for most of these bills, I have to put $75-150 down. And there's so many... How am I suppose to do that?

How would I go about filing bankrupcey?

Talk to a bankruptcy attorney. You can pretty much always get a consultation for free. They can go over your situation with you and explain how it works. I basically just had to spend a couple of afternoons gathering paperwork, go in to sign everything, and then show up to court once. If your income is really low there are usually programs that will reduce the cost of filing too. I did not qualify for that but If I recall correctly the total cost was around 700 for that. I was allowed to take as long as I needed to to make payments, and once I made the last payment my case was filed.

[SuperSavingTips]

I'm confused. You said you were under workman's comp, so shouldn't they be paying your medical bills? Or do you have additional medical bills from an unrelated condition?

If they're unrelated, I would first check that your insurance is covering the amount that they should and that you are being billed for only the amount you are truly responsible for.

Next, I would find out if you are eligible for any financial assistance programs. They might be offered by the hospital, by a government agency, or a charitable organization. Your insurer might even offer a social worker who can guide you to some of these programs.

Then, if you still owe more than you can afford, look up the services on a site like FAIR Health or Healthcare Blue Book to see what the amount should be. Use this information (along with your situation) to negotiate with your providers. Or find a patient advocate to negotiate on your behalf.

If you can't reduce your budget, perhaps you can increase your resources. You could try personal fundraising on sites like GiveForward and Modest Needs.

It may be that bankruptcy is necessary, but I'd try to exhaust other avenues first.

[hamchan]

Whatever you do, if you have a 401k or IRA, do NOT take the money out to pay your medical bills. That money is protected in a bankruptcy and so many people wind up using their retirement to try to pay down medical bills then wind up having to file anyway. BTDT

[WillieGearhart]

I did no t have much experience about how to lower medical bills, but i think yo should need to organize them properly and yes you should write to hospital to lower your medical bills.