Make sure your insurance
company handles your deductibles correctly.
After consumers
complained about their deductibles not being calculated accurately, the New
York State Attorney General’s Office launched an investigation of Excellus
Bluecross Blueshield.
Excellus has agreed to
refund plan members who overpaid health care providers as a result of
Excellus's improper accounting of deductibles.
The settlement also
requires Excellus to properly account for members' deductible and out-of-pocket
expenses to prevent similar denials of claims in the future, New York Attorney
General Eric T. Schneiderman said today in a statement.
The company has made payments totaling about $3.1
million to consumers and providers.
After Excellus wrongly denied claims, providers
either billed the customers for the cost of the services or absorbed the loss
themselves. Excellus reported that the accounting errors –
which affected 12,000 customers – were
the result of a technology glitch after its software was modified.
