4 Ways to Cut Your Medical Bills

CANCEL UNNECESSARY TESTS

Ask a doctor who  suggests a  test  how  the results might changeyour course of treatment.  If the  answer  is "not much." then press for why it is needed. Consider skipping it if you don't get a good answer. Unnecessary procedures  are surprisingly common: One study found they make up 7% of health care spending

SEARCH FOR OPTIONS

Inquire where you can get the work done. Physicians often operate at different locations on different daysof the week. If it is safe and convenient to have the procedure done in an office, rather than a hospital, that often results in big savings. Also use your insurers web cost estimator tool to see if you can get your tests done at lower cost nearby and then bring the results to your doctor to analyze.

COMPARISON  SHOP AHEAD OF TIME

Ask: "How much will that cost?" If the doctor doesn't know, insist on talking with the billing specialist at the office or hospital. You may have to be persistent to get beyond "It depends on your insurance," Rosenthal warns. At a minimum,she says, the facility should be able to provide the cash price. Check your insurer's online estimator tool (or call your insurer) to see if it has information on less expensive options in your community.

Medical Services have long been one of families' biggest budget busters. To diagnose an injured knee, for example, some hospitals post cash prices (the price paid by the uninsured) of more than $4,000 for an MRI. But patients are increasingly able to safely reduce their non-emergency medical bills, says Elisabeth Rosenthal, editor-in-chief of Kaiser Health News and author of An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back.

If you have the time and energy for a little polite questioning of your doctor, a few phone calls, and some web research, you can often dramatically slash your medical bills. In the case of MRls, for instance, by as much as 75%. Rosenthal, who is also a former practicing physician and former New York Times medical correspon­dent, suggests trying these four actions:

VET THE PROFESSIONALS

You don't want surprise bills from other doctors who might participate in your care. Remember that you might not meet providers who, say, read a scan off-site, or treat you when you're under anesthesia. So ask whomever you choose to oversee your care: "What are the names and roles of the other medical professionals who will be involved,and are they in my plan's network?" It pays to double-check their names with your insurer. You can ask your physician to swap out-of-network providers for in-network replacements."I see the anesthesiologist isn't in my network. Is there someone else who can treat me who is?" But doctors don't (or can't) always honor such requests. If they don't, you'll have to take your business elsewhere, or budget for much higher costs.