Federal agency ยท Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: what to do if you cannot pay a medical bill
Federal consumer-bureau guidance on checking whether you owe a bill, looking for billing errors, using appeal rights, financial assistance and payment plans, and avoiding collections.
Know before you go
The page tells you to check that you owe the amount, ask for an itemized list of charges, and look into financial assistance (charity care) before paying. It is general guidance, not an appeal and not a way to cancel a bill. The page notes that ground ambulance rides are not protected by the No Surprises Act. Qualified Medicare Beneficiary program members generally should not be billed for Medicare-covered cost sharing.
- Cost
- Not stated. The page is free to read.
- Where
- Nationwide
- How to start
- Ask the provider's billing office for an itemized bill, check it against your explanation of benefits, and ask about financial assistance and payment plans.
- Phone
- (855) 411-2372, as printed on the provider's page
- Have ready
- The bill; Your explanation of benefits; Your denial or appeal letters
Where this comes from
- Provider
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
- Source we read
- https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-should-i-do-if-i-cant-pay-a-medical-bill-en-2125/
- Date we read it
- . This is not a fresh check.
- Date the provider printed
- Not displayed
- What we checked
- We read the provider's public page. We have not verified availability, eligibility or outcomes for any individual.
Other starting points
- Program or service
1-800-MEDICARE: talk to a person about Medicare
The Medicare phone line and live chat, open all day every day. Staff can point you to the right step for a complaint, and can pass an unresolved complaint to the Medicare Beneficiary Ombudsman.
From Medicare (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
- Program or service
American Cancer Society 24-hour helpline
A phone and chat line staffed around the clock by cancer information specialists who answer questions and connect you to services. It is an information and referral line, not an appeals service.
From American Cancer Society
- Program or service
An Arm and a Leg: First Aid Kit
An archive of articles and starter packs from the podcast An Arm and a Leg, including a starter pack on what to do if you are in collections for medical debt. General reporting on health care costs, not appeal steps.
From An Arm and a Leg