Old MiniMed bills......

[notme]

Last month I recieved a bill from Medtronic (insulin pump) that had dates of service that were two years ago. The bill stated that I had an outstanding bill for these two services in 2001 and 2002. It went on to say that if I had not recieved a bill previously they sincerely apologize, but they would give me a 15% discount if I paid the bill before October 25th. The bill was for approx. $250.00. I called my insurance company and found out that both of these bills had been paid by them at the contracted rate with MiniMed. Medtronic Minimed wrote off a small portion and then billed me for the rest. This is not legal. If you have recieved one of these bills from MiniMed, please contact your insurance company and see if they have paid if they confirm they have paid ask them for copies of the EOB's (Explanation of Benefits) and send a copy to Medtronic with a note to stop billing you. I don't know whether this is just an honest mistake after Medtronic bought out MiniMed or if it is something shady. I have been on another board and there are three of us there that have recieved these types of bills.

Nancy

[michelle20]

well I will be on the look out for sure. But it hasn't happened to me.

[Tony]

I had one of those bills come in last week. I called minimed up. They gave me another number to call. What happen was they sent out alot of bills that was an error. They took care of my bill with no problems.

All you have to do is call them up and they will take care of the problem for you.

[notme]

Hi Tony,

Glad all worked out for you. One of the folks that I spoke with have been battling this bill now for 6 weeks. Perhaps they have a handle on it now. To be on the safe side, it doesn't hurt to call and request the EOB from your insurance company for ammo if you have the same problems as my friend.

Nancy

[notme]

So today I get another MiniMed bill. I called them last month on the 6th and they told me they would correct the problem. Today the bill was threatening my credit. This is a two and three year old claim that was paid 100% by my insurance company. I mailed them YET another EOB showing the bill was paid in full. I am getting very annoyed at MedTronic. They need to figure it out and stop threatening people. Crazy!

Nancy

[Andrea]

Minimed has had troubles with their accounting system for a while! When i got my first pump, 3 years ago, i was told i had 90 days to pay. As soon as i got the insurance money, i gave my rep a credit card number. Months went by and nothing came off the credit card. I didn't say anything because i was liking the interest in my bank account!! A year later, i got a nasty letter from minimed asking me to pay for the pump i had been using for 15 months. I called my rep and gave her the credit card number again and told her about the letter i got. She was full of appologies and the next month my credit card bill was bigger than normal!

Andrea

[Tony]

Remember when I said this? Well they just sent me another one.

I thought she took care of this bill. They are getting a call from me.
Originally posted by Tony
I had one of those bills come in last week. I called minimed up. They gave me another number to call. What happen was they sent out alot of bills that was an error. They took care of my bill with no problems.

All you have to do is call them up and they will take care of the problem for you.

[tp2gam]

I have received the exact bill with different dates and amounts.
I contacted mini med they said it had been paid by my insurance.
Now I just received another one threatening to send it to a collection agency and I have been unable to get ahold of treir billing dept.

[notme]

Hi tp,

Every single time I call Medtronic, they tell me that their system is down. The toll free number to call is 1-888-573-0280. I usually call back within ten minutes and magically the system is up and running again. This has happened no less than five times. Once you get hold of someone make sure you take notes. Get dates of call, name of person you spoke with and the time you called. Just stay on it. I was told to call back to make sure they got the EOB I faxed to them proving the bill was paid. When I did that I was not able to speak with the billing person that I talked to the first time, but they supposedly delivered the message. So far they have not called back. Fax any records you have of the bill being paid (the EOB is best) to 1-888-771-1293 and have it directed to the billing dept. If you don't have a copy of the EOB (Explanation of Benefits) call your insurance company and they will provide one for you. I had to do that. Just keep records. If my bill isn't fixed this month I am going to file a complaint. My credit better not get damaged by them.

Every person that I have talked to about this issue is struggling to get this resolved. So far I know of four people with this same issue that we are battling. Crazy huh?

Nancy

[Tony]

I just called that number now. But the office was closed. I was able to leave a message.

[notme]

Same thing happened to me Tony. The system was down and then they closed. Very convenient...LOL

Nancy

[notme]

I called Medtronic this morning. WOW the system was up and running. I spoke with Yvette. I asked if they received the EOB that I faxed on the 6th, she said she would look. Yvette came back on the line 10 minutes later and asked if I would bear with her that she was going through a deep stack of EOB's. (Does this tell you they are just sitting with nobody working on them?) After about ten minutes she found it and she corrected the billing error. She told me I should receive no more bills and this account was resolved. We will see.

Long story short. If you have faxed an EOB make sure you call and have someone find it. They are just sitting there and they are not being addressed. If you force them to go through the stack, they should fix the bill and hopefully your credit will remain in good standing. I can't believe they are so disorganized!

Nancy