Instead of paying some of the medical service provider directly, Anthem/Blue Cross of California has starting sending checks to some of their patients to pay their portion of the bill they negotiated. As a "convenience" to help consumers manage their health care better.
I have received three checks (that I know of...) since 1 January for medical service in December. I know of at least seven doctor's visits and lab work appointments that were completed in December in my household, perhaps more; what if I missed one, a check was mixed in with a neighbor's mail by mistake (and tossed as junk mail), or my husband thought it was yet another survey and tossed a $100 - $500 check that was supposed to pay the insurance portion for the doctor's visit in the spam mail pile .
These checks are coming to my house 30 - 40 days after the service was provided, and at least 20 days after the billing was negotiated. Think about all that interest that is collecting on that money; in a large account with a better interest rate than the average bank account, they can easily recover almost a quarter of that check back as it sits and waits another 60 - 90 days for me to get it to the medical service billing. Unfortunately, like a good two-thirds (or more) of Americans, I'm living a "median class" lifestyle which is not what's commonly considered "middle class" (a lifestyle that typically requires an annual income of $120K - $150K...). The upper third of Americans with a better balance in their bank accounts (or better credit) than my household have no problems with simply considering the insurance check as a refund.
For me, that $100 check from the insurance company to pay their part of the bill runs the risk of getting hijacked for some necessity (like veterinary dental work, an inconvenient utility bill, or new car-seat for the grandbaby due at the end of the month) that would otherwise be patched vice replaced, bought thrift store vice new, or otherwise sacrificed/saved for. It's very difficult not to justify "well, I can use half of this for that something I need now and make arrangements with the hospital to pay over time...". The only way to avoid that temptation is to just sign it over to the billing department as soon as one receives it, and never let it see one's bank account at all. Because I'm sure as hell not going to put it in my bank account; I do not make (hell, never had made) enough to "run a $20K balance every cycle in my money market account" and set up an automatic bill paying with the various medical services used by my household as executives and six-figure "middle class" professionals are able to do.
From what I learned in the accounting/financial strategies portion of my courses for my business degree, that's really what the insurance company wants you to do, because that transfer of the check adds another 14 to 30 days before that money actually leaves the payables account on their books (and stops collecting interest). That means there can now be an additional 90 - 120 days after they've allocated the funds before the funds are released.
Haele
= new reply since forum marked as read