Please advise – very high emergency room bill

Two years ago while on vacation I went to an in-network emergency room in California (I live in another state) for extreme pain that was diagnosed at a later date by a different provider as a kidney stone.

At this California emergency room, I was seen by a physician and the services received included an IV with a prescription-strength ibuprofen, a urine test, a blood test, and they provided me with several more individual doses of the prescription ibuprofen when I was discharged approximately two hours later without a clear diagnosis.

My insurance at the time was a high-deductible short-term plan by United Healthcare.

The provider invoiced me for $9000 with a "self-pay policy discount" that reduced the invoice to $6300.

I reminded them I had insurance and that I gave them those details at the time of service. They revised the invoice and billed me for $8500. The EOB from my United Healthcare insurance showed the $9000 and a $500 "contractual write-off" and the EOB indicated that my responsibility was now $8500. My insurance deductible was higher than $9000.

I have contacted the provider to get an itemized bill. I received one that results in the same amount. I asked if they could review the bill for any errors. They say there are no errors and that I should forward any complaints to my insurance. I asked the provider for a reduced bill that I could consider to immediately pay. They seem unwilling to modify the amount in any way. I attempted this several times with offers of specific amounts. The provider continues to appear unwilling to reduce the amount.

The provider suggested I apply for financial assistance. It has very clear eligibility criteria and my income is slightly higher than the cutoff where they will provide no assistance, so I see no value in giving them the exhaustive amount of personal information that their financial assistance request requires.

Side note: I received a separate invoice for this incident for physician services from another firm, but this post is asking for advice for the emergency room provider.

Any advice that would help me achieve my goal of paying a reasonable amount?

submitted by /u/AssumptionUseful2916
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