MAY 31, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, MAY 31, 2015, 9:38 AM
BY LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
They were moments of crisis for each family. A newborn who wasn’t breathing was rushed to intensive care. A 15-year-old skier who wiped out on a slope in the Catskills needed surgery to reconstruct his shoulder. A 65-year-old insurance agent who survived a heart attack needed urgent bypass surgery to clear his arteries.
The stress didn’t stop once these medical crises passed, however. Within a few weeks, each family received an unexpected medical bill.
They had been savvy enough to follow their insurers’ rules and choose in-network hospitals to maximize their coverage and minimize their out-of-pocket costs. But one or more of the physicians who took care of them — and over whom they had no choice — did not participate in their insurance network.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/out-of-network-medical-bills-a-costly-shock-in-n-j-1.1345737