Needing help/advice with negotiating medical bills TL;DR at the bottom

So, I was bit by a stray cat, and my MD recommended I get the rabies pep course. I’m a single dude, living on my own, and I chatted with my insurance to see if they would cover it. The rep said they would “cover it 100%.” Turns out, that was a bald face lie. I have a transcript of the conversation emailed to me FROM Humana, but now I have to front over $3,000 out of pocket. I tried to explain that to Humana, but they said they weren’t able to do anything and to talk to the provider (UofL Health – STS Mary and Elizabeth Hospital).

So, I talked to the UofL Health’s billing department, and they did a check on all the codes just to make sure things were cool. I guess they were, because I just got the bill in the mail for 3.2k. I checked their medical debt forgiveness policy, and I make just barely above the 300% poverty line where they forgive your bills completely. I don’t have 3.2k to my name though. I have never had a bill this large before, and I have no clue what to do. Any help from a fellow Louisvillian would be much MUCH appreciated. I’m kinda freaking out.

TL;DR My insurance didn’t cover something they said they would, and now I need advice on how to get my $3.2k bill reduced to avoid going completely bankrupt.

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