Received a $500 medical bill 1.5 years after services were rendered. Is there any recourse?
Hello all, sorry if this is the wrong community to post in but have seen other medical bills posts here.
I live in NY state and was insured at the time of services rendered (5/2021) under my works healthcare plan. In December of 2022, I received a $500+ medical bill from a lab that has two line items:
“Surgical pathology” and “immunohistochemisty, each”. With insurance paying $0 and $22 in “insurance adjustments / transfers”
I remember vaguely of the visit, and called ahead to make sure my dermatologist accepted my insurance and they said they did. It seems the lab they used is part of a different and larger university hospital system. The bill is from the lab itself and not my dermatologist.
Is there anything I can do to lessen the amount I owe? Is there a time limit over which they can bill me? If I were to dispute this, should I start with the lab, dermatologist, or my insurance company? Any help is appreciated, thank you!
EDIT: Within the bill, there is a message stating: “Your insurance has rejected these charges because services were performed after your membership cancelation. Please remit payment.”