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We miss our Mayo Phoenix... Ever since Medicare kicked in
We really do! We miss the professionalism, the focus on the patient, not feeling like we're using up the doctor's time....
But then 2 years ago I had a Total Knee Replacement and the billing nightmare began. Before turning 65, we never saw a bill. Aside from $20 copay, our Blue Cross policy took care of it all.
Then came Medicare and major surgery. It took 2 years 100s of phone calls between Blue Cross, Mayo billing and Medicare. And we still paid over $1000 out of pocket.
We want to come back to Mayo and will try a simple office visit.
My question is: Is there a service that will take the plethora of Medicare checks sent to us, random checks for $1.50 to $500, checks for who knows what part of the procedure and bill, a service that can work with Medicare, Mayo billing and secondary insurer to sort all the confusion? We would gladly pay for the service! However since all parties insist on only speaking to us, I'm not sure how it would work.
Our plan at the moment is to come back to Mayo for simple checkups, but go to another hospital/provider, that accepts Medicare payments for any major procedures.
Anyone have a solution for this problem?
Thanks
Paul
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@phoenixpal. Your persistence paid off! Mayo Clinic did research your questions and respond to you. This is very good news indeed and it's great information for everyone here to know. It's celebration time indeed. 👏😀
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3 ReactionsThank you Helen and Colleen.
I guess there's bad news too. We waited too long, over 3 years and Primary Care over at Thunderbird has not been taking "new" patients since 2020.
I did get in right under the 3 yr cutoff with Dermatology out on Shea. So there's that anyway.
I am editing a message that I sent before seeing that your problem got resolved. So, now, I just say Congratulations!
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2 ReactionsYup. World-class care, but ONLY if you have world-class INSURANCE.
Been going here 10 years. Once I started on Medicare, you get charged for every little thing. And Medicare will not pay beyond very limited services. Expect LOTS of hidden charges.
Mayo says they will accept Medicare, but as I understand it, that's a real narrow interpretation on their part. They very clearly discourage people over 65.
And after going here for two more years while on Medicare, I thought to ask before treatments as to cost of services, what's covered by Medicare, etc. None of the Mayo providers could provide an answer! Only "make sure you sign that form saying you're responsible for anything your insurance doesn't pay for. " Welcome to open-ended charges. Who does that when hiring someone? Do you give ANY professional carte blanche when billing you for services???
Oh well, time to look for another provider.
@mrfixit, you may be interested in this related discussion where fellow Mayo Clinic patients are talking about how Medicare is used at Mayo Clinic.
- Does Mayo Clinic take Medicare? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/does-mayo-clinic-take-medicare/
Insurance and comprehensive coverage is complex and frustrating. To get more information, you may wish to contact Mayo Clinic Insurance and Billing.
– Insurance & Billing: Contact https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/billing-insurance/contact-us
Insurance regulations are different at the 3 campuses and the Mayo Clinic Health Systems campuses in part due to state regulations. Here are the contact numbers for each location.
Patient Appointment Services
- AZ 480-301-8484
- FL 904-953-0853
- MN 844-217-9591
- MCHS 1-844-217-9591
For guidance on what type of Medicare might work best for you, you can contact Medicare at 1-877-839-2675 to be connected with your local Area Agency on Aging where trained counselors can help walk through the options.
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2 ReactionsSorry to hear you have insurance issues.
I have Medicare A and B, with AARP/United Healthcare (Med B, plan G). I have had extensive testing, including a cardiac catherization at MC in Rochester. I do have a higher premium than other Med B plans, but my out of pocket is very minimal.
Like many types of insurance, e.g. auto, generally the higher the premium the less deductible and out of pocket cost, and vise versa.
You may benefit from talking with trained health care insurance expert. I have one I can talk with at my financial planners office. AARP my also offer some resources.
Good luck, be well.
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2 ReactionsLooking into resources offered by AARP is a good idea, @wessells.
I found this place to help people get started:
- Health Care and Coverage (AARP) https://www.aarp.org/health/health-insurance/
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1 Reaction@danab,
We are still trying to resolve the out-of-network billing issue we have and the dismissive response we got from Billing is that we need to work it out with our insurance! However, our insurance says Mayo has to submit the claim properly in order for the member to get the in-network benefit covered under our plan!! May I ask who is your contact at Mayo who is helping you resolve your billing issues at Mayo? I'd like to get in touch with him/her to see they can possibly help us with our billing issue. Hope to hear from you soon. Thanks!
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1 Reaction@caretakermom, I was under the impression that we had connected you with someone through the transplant department. I will send you a private message to help get to the bottom of your special circumstance.
You have traditional Medicare, with good Medigap policy. So do I and at MC Rochester I never saw a bill - and I had both VAT surgery and a cardiac stent done. The comment above about insurance regulations being different by State is interesting. We are lucky in Minnesota. I did read that Mayo Arizona handles things differently.
One thing did happen though with billing - I originally had emergency angiogram done in Twin Cities and they identified blockage. I refused stent because I knew I had something wrong with my lung/upcoming Mayo appointment and I ALSO KNEW a stent requires blood thinning treatment for 6-12 months and nobody would want to operate on me while I was on Plavix. So, they put me on medication for the coronary blockage until I could resolve the lung issue. A few weeks later I had lung surgery, and they removed a stage 1b cancer. I MADE THE RIGHT CALL!!!! I was nervous about refusing the stent but they did tell me that research shows one can manage on medication and not a stent for CAD. With my type of lung cancer, I know that surgery could be a possibility in the future, and I did not want to compromise my treatment options. So, I asked for a consult at Mayo on whether given my blockage characteristics, it was better for me to stay on medication or do a stent. Unfortunately, when they did the angiogram in Minneapolis, they did not do any measurements about blood flow and that would be key to the decision (many places do not take this measurement). Mayo suggested a blood measure CT scan test, put it in the system and Medicare refuses to cover it. WHAT?? Cost $11000, NO I am not going to pay that. Mayo then recommended I do another angiogram with blood flow measurements and make decision on that. That is of course more invasive, but I do it and actually they do decide on a stent. Now I did a little googling and found guidelines about when to do this CT blood flow test. I suspect that the reason Medicare did not want to cover that test was because I had already done an angiogram 4 months before showing severe blockage.