Hospital Bills

Ok, I get it...you go to the hospital, you get treatment, they send you a bill. What I don't understand is why in this age of such great technological advances in computer systems and programs do major hospitals have to send you a separate bill for each time you go there? Who was it that coined the term "super bill"?...someone who probably figured out that billing for all hospital visits by the same person on one bill would make things a hell of a lot easier. The patient can clearly see what charges were for what date of service, how much they owe on that charge and what their current balance is. The hospital can clearly see the same information. Benefits to both patient and hospital include less paper, less chance for bills to get lost in a pile of mail, less cost for postage and less confusion on which payment was sent on which date and which date of service it was for.

This is 2009, why I am getting 5 bills from the same hospital each with a different account number, date of service, amount due and balance owed. And not only do I get these statements in the mail, but about 5 days after the bill is generated, a payment reminder is also generated. So I am getting something from this hospital just about every day. This is my answer to this issue...I collect all the bills from that hospital and wait until all of them have been received. I write a check for each one, noting the account number on each check. I put them all in one envelope and mail them so the hospital gets all 5 on the same day at the same time. GENIUS! I just saved about 3 trees doing that. The downfall is that by the time I pay everything, I am already getting bills that are due for the next month. I've asked over and over again for them to send me one statement but they can't. Why the hell not? Get up to date people. You are a MAJOR hospital in NYC...you can't afford a better billing system??? Take some of the money I am paying you and spring for it, your patients will thank you. Plus you might actually get paid on time.

Stop sending me a payment reminder before I even get the bill in the mail! Are you trying to get me to slip up and send you two payments that month??? Do you take me for a sucker? Sorry, not me...I'm on to you!