May 31, 2021

When your doctor only takes dollars

You head to your doctor's office for a pressing medical need. But upon arriving you learn that he doesn't accept your health insurance plan. The out-of-pocket cost you'd have to pay is expensive. What should you do?

Truth is, many physicians don't accept certain forms of health insurance. In fact, plenty of doctors today choose to forego working with health insurance companies altogether and require cash payments from patients. For instance, consider that only 71% of doctors accepted Medicaid in 2019, per data from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission.

It's important to understand why many physicians are rejecting health insurance plans and requiring cash payments instead, as well as your options as a patient under the circumstances. Read my latest article for Insurance.com on this topic here.