I know, I'm going to come off as a bad person for asking this question.....but.... I have to.
Just want a few other opinions:

Early on after d-day, I was a massive train wreck. I didn't eat, I didn't do anything but cry. Day and night. Was in bad shape. Wanted to die, didn't have anything to hold on to. Nothing.

SO, in NY there is a "hot line" I called. just to clear my head on really bad day. Well I did so at work. I also had to cut the call short, the person on the other end felt I was at risk. I didn't think so. But? what to I know I was sick. Still am from time to time. I just have control now.
Anyway. I had to get back to work. Well person on the other end of the line felt I was at risk. Traced the call. Had the police come and drag me to the hospital.

NOW for the question that leaves me feeling pretty small:

The bill.

I told the hospital I didn't want to be there.
I didn't want to be admitted.
I didn't talk to any Doctors while I was there.
I didn't give them my insurance info.
The next day, I was "let go"

SO I get a bill.
My insurance co. was billed and payed. And I'm responsable for the remaining 20%.

I don't want to pay that. I don't think I should. I wasn't given any real care. I just took up space (that I told them at the time could have been used for a real sick person).

I even did go to my own Dr. got some AD's that I took for a month. Point being.

My only point, I tried to take care of myself by calling a "hot line" when I was feeling down. I got what I needed from that. But they felt the need to call the police.

Any opinions on paying the bill. I don't really want to. I hate to not pay what I owe. But it is a lot of money. And I don't feel like I really "owe" it. I'm not saying I should rob the local clinic. Just, I didn't really get any care. Just a cage. Got my blood pressure checked every couple of hours. I watched it go from VERY VERY high back to normal while I was there....

thanks for anyones two cents
(haha)

ooo..good question.

I suspect that you'd be responsible, but I understand your feelings about it.

DaltonDad,
I'd pay it. If you can't make full payment, I'm sure they'd accept partial payments. You were there (against your own wishes or not) and had you needed any serious further help, you would have gotten it.

I'm glad you're doing okay. I felt/feel the same way. Some days, sometimes, it's a little scary. IC helps though. Good luck to you!

CC

DD

You could make a call to your local Bar Association, or to the state Attorney General's office and get a (probably) free legal standpoint as to whether you'd owe for those "services", or not.

There may also be a "broker" who can negotiate a lower "amount due", but I'm not sure where to direct you in that effort. The Bar Assn or Atty Gen's office MAY have some leads for you in that direction.

SD

I wouldnt pay it, but thats just me, I feel that is unjust. When you called was there a disclaimer somewhere that said you would be hauled off if "they" thought you needed it?

I know if I would have known that they could do that, I wouldnt have called, especially from work.

Ok here is a shocker. Believe it or not the person on the other end of the phone had some training. They are trained to listen for things that lead them to believe you may be a risk to yourself or others.

If you said ANYTHING that led that person to believe you were a risk they were well within the law.

There are only two ways you CAN NOT refuse treatment

1) altered mental status

2) risk to yourself or others.

Sorry, but thats the way the law is. With the reason you were in there a doctor wasnt required.

I guess look at it this way, someone cared enough to be THAT worried about you. You have no idea how much paper work that person and the police had to go through. It is a tough decision for any health care worker to make.

<small>[ December 13, 2004, 07:11 PM: Message edited by: john3479 ]</small>

I'm sure that everyone here knows that there is no such thing as a stupid question.

The only exception as my father always reminded me: One that you know the answer for. I would ask him questions to "test" him. He was always smart enough to know if I knew the answer, didn't matter if it was technical, or emotional, or historical. HAHA smart guy.

That is why I called it a stupid question. I sort of know the answer. BUT I wasn't testing anyone here. Just wanted to make sure that my emotions were in check.

As much as I dislike the idea of paying. More than that, I really am soooooo embarassed about having been hauled out of my work place be the police. In fact, just being taken to the hospital at the time did more to harm my mental state than what I was feeling before the phone call.

Anyway, I morally feel I should. Just sort of mad that I never had a say in going, then, to boot, got a bill!
Sort of gets your goat so to speak.

BTW John:

I know the people on the other end are trained. And this isn't to bad mouth them since they aren't payed a lot. Found this out during my stay at the hospital. Some are volunteers even. They get trained on the job. They are taught to listen to key works and things like that. They aren't certified. It is a subjective call if they start the ball rolling for tracing a call.

That isn't sour grapes. Just me grumping!
I am happy that a person who I don't know cared enough to make sure I was okay! Hell at that point strangers "seemed" to care more than my own wife about my wellbeing.

thanks ya'll


Things are better now.

The other sad thing about this is that the record of this will affect your insurance rating. Whenever we are put on AD's too. Our insurance rates go up because they consider us bad risks.

Any diagnosis will stick for years and years. I don't know if there is people have much success in getting any of that changed. I wonder if there a difference if the doctor puts down the diagnosis as being situationally depressed or chronically depressed when they prescribe AD's (or Xanax for anxiety). Should we inquire about that? Most of us don't think of the repercussions of these things until after the fact and we get the bills.

Anybody with insurance background out there to advise?

I was on Zoloft years ago and it didn't affect my insurance costs at all.

It was situational (divorcing).

My insurance pretty much comes from my employer.
If they were to change my premiums based on a "former" condition, I could cry discrimination.
However, my employer wouldn't do that. They are making health insurance pretty ugly. But, they are doing it for pretty much everyone equally.
Your deductable is a percentage of your base pay.
And while it doesn't take into account the bonus' that CEO's and VP's make, it also doesn't take into account overtime. So for the average working person, high level, or low it's the percentage coming out of your check a few times a month.