The scales of justice are clearly “unbalanced” when medical providers charge far and above what insurance will cover by what is known as “balance billing.”

Judah Ariel, who wrote about her mother’s life threatening accident in the March 21^st Forum section of the Plain Dealer, did an excellent job explaining how balance billing is a “double strike” against those who can’t afford health insurance. Not being able to afford health insurance is “strike one” and having medical providers jacking-up the true cost of their services so the uninsured pays exorbitant fees is “strike two.”

I am fortunate to have decent insurance to protect me against this practice. However, looking at three recent bills from my insurance carrier (see them at http://tinyurl.com/ykfn29l) vividly illustrate balance billing in action. One bill lists “Amount Charged” as $708.49 and “Amount Allowed” as $446.35. Another bill lists “Amount Charged” as $401.00 and “Amount Allowed” as $165.22. The last bill lists “Amount Charged” as $433.35 and “Amount Allowed” as $153.00. Without the insurance company to knock down the final amounts charged by the providers, I would have paid a total of $1542.84 instead of $764.57 which is more than double what an uninsured person would have paid.

I pray that the new health care reform bill puts an end to this practice. If not, then our elected officials need to address this shameful scam immediately.

So what do YOU think about these billing practices? Please leave your comment below.