Hospital Bill Question

jayteecork

So this is the story:
I was referred by my GP to a private consultant in Cork City. I went to see him, paying my 120 euro and he said that he wants for me to have a scan done. I explained that I have no health insurance, he said no problem, he'll put me on the public health system. Anyway 2-3 months later I went in for my scan and your one told me that'll be 70 euro. I told her, but my consultant put me through the public system. She said, no way, that as I went to see him in his "private" consulatation rooms I'm now on the private system. I grudingly told her "whatever" and she said she'd sent me out the bill. Anyway I didn't pay much attention until this morning when an "overdue" letter arrived from the Mercy.

Obviously there's no question of me paying after he said he was putting me through the public system, so what are my options?
Could this affect my credit rating?
I'm just a poor student right now and can't really afford this.

wuggy_bear

Unfortunately i work in the hospital system and this is quiet a common occurence with consultants saying that to patients they treat privately,there is honestly nothing you can do because you saw the doctor first privately and must remain that way as it was your option to see the consultant privately.

Its against hospital policy and the H.S.E rules that you cannot change from private to public but you can change from being public to private.

the wau a hospital will view it is that you were privste and you got the scan quicker than a public patient therefore you must pay the bill. if you dont pay the bill the hospital will more or less send it on to a debt collector usually intrum justita.

Their letters are harshly worded but it is up to the hospital to recover the debt but as per new instruction from the H.S.E they will keep chasing you until you pay the invoice.

I would suggest speaking to the consultant that referred you because they are all aware of this and why he mis informed you.

If your a poor student write to the H.S.E in Cork and ask them to waive the fee but more than likely the wont.

eth0_

A consultant can't 'put you on the public system' - by this I presume you mean the medical card.

That's up to the HSE and it is means tested, you don't get a medical card because a doctor took pity on you!

It sounds to me like your misunderstood what he said. By 'public system' I think he meant just that - the one where you pay for your consultations yourself.

Get medical insurance. There are student deals.

TheDriver

everyone is entitled to be on the public system for hospital stuff afaik, its things like free gp etc that the med card is for.
Get Med Insurance, if you can afford it as the benefits are great if you need it as you did in your case. And you skip the public queues

jayteecork

Thanks for the replies.
I actually do have a medical card but I understand that the first consultation with a consultant is 120, whether you have medical insurance, card, whatever. everyone pays it.
What annoys me is that he said he was putting me on the public system, and as a poster above stated, he cannot do this. He knew that I couldn't transfer to public as I had seen him in his rooms, so why he said it I dont know, so annoying.
I'm going to write a letter to the HSE with my medical card number, outlining what the consultant said, and also outlining my current status as a student.
See if they waive it.

Should I write directly to the hospital or to the HSE office in Cork?
Thanks

eth0_

Did you ring this guy and ask what has caused the confusion?

No offence but I don't know any students who can't afford to pay a 200 euro hospital bill if they cut down on their socialising for a few weeks!

The_Conductor

Jayteecork- the public and the private systems are fairly well delineated from each other. If you are a public patient- you can visit a consultant, as a public consultation (normally in a public hospital, not in a private consultancy capacity). Most of them hold public clinics- I sometimes stick myself down for them, just to see how long they take etc. It can take months- or in extreme cases, even longer, to get a public appointment (I've been waiting 3 months for an initial public consultation about something thats not urgent). An alternate is for a GP to privately refer you to a consultant- which is what appears to have happened in your case- its a lot faster, but it does incur the EUR 120 cost per visit. Once you visit privately- you can go for follow up scans either in the public or private systems, but you have forfeited the right to be treated as a public patient. I.e. you can get your scans done in a public hospital, skipping the usual queues, but you will incur the EUR 60 for blood tests etc.

I think you misunderstood what the consultant said about putting you into the public system- he got the tests done for a fraction of what they would have cost had you gotten them done in a private hospital, but they do still incur a personal cost nonetheless.

Unfortunately this is why 60% of the population elect to have private health insurance- its all well and good having a medical card- or indeed relying on the public health system, as every citizen is entitled to, but if you need something done in a hurry- you have to pay for it. Its hard- as a student my VHI bill often took up over 20% of my total income (I had a parttime job in a bookshop) but its something I viewed as a necessary evil.

In short- if you don't pay the bill, it most certainly will impact on your credit record. There was a misunderstanding- that is unfortunate, but irrelevant to your current bill.

SerialComplaint

First step would be to phone the consultants for a chat. If you did misunderstand him (as smccarrick suggests), then you should at least notify him, so he can be clearer in future.

I wonder if the hospital/HSE policy would stand up to Ombudsman review. It does seem fundamentally wrong that a decision to see a consultant privately is effectively held against you. OP could push the hospital for a written copy of the policy, and then complain to the hospital CEO. Give them a month, and then refer the complaint to Prof Drumm. Give him a month, and then off to the Ombusdman.

themadchef

I went to see a consultant a number of weeks ago privately reffered by my GP. Upon seeing the consultant he felt that in three months i may need another review. His words were along the lines of ....it's silly paying €150 to see me privately when you can see me for free at my public clinic. I really only need to see you once here. Just phone secretary nearer to the time to arrange it.
seemed very nice of him.

beaushalloe

ive posted this in medicine but it may be mor suited here.

i have to go for a scan, i have no medical card or health insurance. and when i rang them today they said i could get it in 3-4 weeks by going private and paying for it or else going public and waiting up to ten weeks and getting it free.

my query is, i dont mind paying for it now (and i would like to be seen quicker) but what happens if i then have to get further tests, (which could be costly) can i then go public and wait?

The_Conductor

In practice, once you go private, irrespective of your financial means, you forfeit the right to go public. There was a thread on this in the longtermillness forum a few weeks back.

Its not fair to be honest- particularly if those tests that you're going for do uncover something that requires treatment of some nature.

Check this with your consultant and be very very careful.