Where to get assistance with medical bills

One of the most difficult financial scenarios for families to deal with is medical bills, especially those that result from an unexpected illness, chronic ailment or accident resulting in serious injuries.

Beyond the out-of-pocket or uninsured expenses to hospitals, doctor offices and pharmacies, some families also face huge related costs for special foods or over-the-counter supplements, gas money for out-of-town medical appointments, hotel rooms when a family member is hospitalized some distance away, babysitting for the other siblings and sometimes loss of income when a wage earner can no longer work.

What can you do?

• Call the 211 hotline. This service is run locally by the United Way of Monroe County. It’s just like 911 when you need a police officer or fire truck, but this hotline focuses on charities and non-profits. The 211 operator will check the United Way’s database of what agencies are providing what services in the community, with the goal of directing you to the most appropriate available resources to help with your situation. (Many other communities across the U.S. also have 211 hotlines.)
• Go to Julie’s List. She has a huge database of links to free and low-cost community resources in the Southeast Michigan and metro Detroit area, including services that are available in in Monroe County. Specific lists on her site include Adult Dental Needs, Adult Medical Care, Adult Free Medical Tests, Special Wish Programs, AIDS and HIV resources, Caregiver Support, Child Dental Needs, Children’s Medical Resources, Chore Services for the Elderly or Disabled, Crisis Pregnancy Services, Disability Resources, Emergency Travel, Prescription Resources and Meals on Wheels.
• Do you have access to a Flexible Spending Account, and are you using this tax-saving program to its full advantage? Maybe you don’t know how much your out-of-pocket medical expenses will be in the coming year, but it’s a safe bet that the deductible will be eaten up fairly quickly or your daily prescriptions have a certain monthly co-pay. The deductibles and known co-pays are the numbers I work with when making my family’s annual FSA allocations. And here’s an on-line FSA expense calculator.
• Take advantage of all the free health programs and services that are available in the area. You’ll find support group meetings at the Monroe Talks calendar and listed third Sundays in the print and e-editions of The Monroe Evening News. There also are free health fairs in Monroe County throughout the year, which are posted on the MonroeTalks calendar and in the newspaper as time and space allows.
• Several local pharmacies participate in free or discount generic drug programs - ask your pharmacist for details because the offers change frequently. Check Hot Prescription Deals at Hot Coupon World for an entire bulletin board devoted to this topic.
• Work those coupon /sales flier / rebate programs to get deep discounts on over-the-counter medications and supplements.
• If you want to go the “fundraiser event” route to help with medical expenses, be aware that benefit spaghetti dinners and similar events take a lot of time and effort to organize and publicize. While a week’s notice is enough time, in most situations, to list a charity event notice in the print and e-editions of The Monroe Evening News; you really need to start a publicity campaign as much as two months before the event to take full advantage of other outlets such as church bulletins, sending letters to local civic clubs for their support, sending home fliers from school and repeat hits at the MonroeTalks calendar.
• If you decide to hold a fundraiser event, you also should prepare for the possibility that you will not meet your financial goal. Your benefit is competing for time and attention among all the other events that local residents already have in their day planners - and sometimes, also the weather. I once served on a fundraiser event committee for a local club where the advance reservation count was so low that the benefit was canceled. While a non-profit group can cope with an occasional financial loss from a canceled event or disappointing attendance, what about the impact on a family that is already living paycheck to paycheck?
• Figure out any other possible place in your household budget to save money. It is entirely possible that a program that is intended to help people with medical needs will have run out of funding, have a long waiting list or simply is not available for your circumstances. Even if you do get help with the medical bills, you may run into cash flow problems while financial assistance settles out. Do you qualify for student, senior citizen, military, union member or employee discounts on services and products? Now is the time to use those programs to their fullest potential. Does a reduction in household income mean the children are eligible for reduced-price school lunches? If you qualify for such a program, you are one of the families it was intended for. Sign up.

Updated May 4, 2008