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News Article
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Get help with medical bills
If you can't afford to pay a big medical bill, here are some tips on how to handle the matter.
Assistance
If your medical bills are from a hospital, you should know that many hospitals get government funds and donations to cover the bills for patients who cannot pay them themselves.
Talk to your hospital's billing department or financial counselor about what programs they have. Remember to find out what the application procedure and qualifications are.
Often, assistance programs are restricted to people who owe above a certain amount, have income below a certain limit, and/or have no medical insurance. Even if you ultimately do not qualify, it does not hurt to ask.
Hospitals are not the only places where you can get financial assistance with your medical debt - many non-profits provide the same the service.
As with hospitals, non-profit programs are often restricted to limited income and/or uninsured individuals.
To find out what programs are available in your area, contact your local United Way or dial 211. You may also be able to get information from relevant disease support groups.
Create a plan
While your current concern may be the bills you need to pay now, chances are you will have more medical bills to pay in the future. Getting sick is just a part of life.
If your employer offers it, one option is to set up a flexible spending account.
At the beginning of the enrollment period (usually Jan. 1), you tell you employer how much you want withheld from each paycheck and sent to your account.
You typically must pay for the costs out of pocket first and then get reimbursed after submitting a claim form. While the money sent to a flexible spending account is not taxed, there is one drawback: you lose any money that is not spent by the end of the year.
Thus, you should not contribute more to a flexible spending account than you reasonably expect to spend.
Next week: Health savings accounts and other options for covering healthcare costs. For more information, call BALANCE at (888) 456-2227 or go online to www.balancepro.net.
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