this post was submitted on 25 Jun 2025
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RFK Jr. Wants Every American to Be Sporting a Wearable Within Four Years (gizmodo.com)
submitted 19 hours ago by return2ozma@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] Absaroka@lemmy.world 35 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago) (2 children)

You know what else would help? Annual (or more) blood tests during routine wellness checks with your doctor.

Do you know why most people don't get those?

~~Insurance won't cover them.~~ Many insurance providers won't cover them.

Maybe start there? Although I'm guessing he has no buddies who would make money from routine blood tests.

[–] Wolf314159@startrek.website 36 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (4 children)

The best part is the random bill.

  • Go to the doctor. Get blood drawn.
  • Doctor send the blood to a lab for the test. Doesn't tell me who. I don't care who. It's their subcontractor, let them worry about it. *Go back to the doctor or get a call for results. Pay the doctor the standard co-pay. *Months later a random company sends me a bill. This is a company that I have never interacted with or entered into any contract with, for work that somebody else (presumably my doctor, but who the fuck knows for sure) asked them to do for them, sending the results to that other person and NOT to me.

The system is broken. If any other company subcontracted a part of their work to a third party, you as the client would reasonably expect that work to be paid through the original contract, not get a bill directly from the subcontractor. I didn't hire them, the doctor hired them. As far as I'm concerned, that's the doctor's subcontractor and their debt, not mine. I paid the doctor already.

Or another variant.

  • Go to the emergency room.
  • Get separate bills FOR THE SAME SERVICE from the hospital, the doctor, and somehow the hospital again but this time it's the emergency room (which is somehow separate with a different billing company).

The system is not just broken. It is designed to fleece us and train us to always accept whatever debt the institutions decide to levy on us without question.

[–] AA5B@lemmy.world 2 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago)

Or how about the variant:

  • submit prescription refill request
  • check back
  • check back
  • check back
  • escalate
  • “we don’t have your insurance info”
  • yes you do but here it is again
  • resubmit prescription refill request
  • check back
  • check back
  • check back
  • escalate
  • “we don’t accept that insurance. Find a new doctor”

New doctor

  • “why don’t you take your prescriptions regularly?”
[–] Geodad@lemmy.world 5 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

As medical bills can't currently ding your credit score, I just throw them in the trash.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 2 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

Only up to $500 though? And if you keep ignoring them, what will you do when you run out of providers? I can't go to the one hand expert in the area because I owe him money. Same for the CVS doc.

[–] Geodad@lemmy.world 4 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

They send it to the same collection agency. They have never denied us care yet.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 2 points 45 minutes ago

Thanks for answering! Maybe I just need to go back?

[–] vxx@lemmy.world 5 points 11 hours ago (2 children)

That would be a violation of the hiipa act. Your samples get sent anonymous to the Lab with only a case number. They only know the adress of the doctor.

If your doctor didn't anonymise your sample and the lab used it to send you a bill, they're in deep waters.

[–] Wolf314159@startrek.website 3 points 11 hours ago

Somehow I think the national lab test company's lawyers have got them covered. This wasn't exactly a fly by night, no name company. Having in known third party send you a medical bill months later is pretty fucking common place. This was just one anecdote of many, not an isolated incident.

[–] DemBoSain@midwest.social 3 points 11 hours ago

Not when the lab and the hospital are owned by the same company. Promedica (local hospital) sent my sample to Promedica (lab) and I got a bill from the lab. Because Promedica (lab) didn't have my insurance information.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 1 points 9 hours ago

The doctor bill is separate because they're not hospital employees. The only have privileges to work at a given hospital, not for them.

The separate ER bill is likely some fuckery I'm ignorant of.

[–] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

You know what else would help? Annual (or more) blood tests during routine wellness checks with your doctor.

Do you know why most people don’t get those?

Insurance won’t cover them.

My insurance covers this.

[–] Absaroka@lemmy.world 1 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

I tweaked. Many (most?) don't.

[–] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 9 hours ago

Interesting. I've never had an issue with it over multiple insurances. Maybe it's just the plans my employers went with ¯\_(ツ)_/¯