Argh How do medical collections work in CH 7?

[aces67]

We have health insurance through dh's employer. Our prescription coverage is kind of odd though. Any medication that we take on a regular basis is NOT covered unless we get it by mail every 90 days through Caremark. Dh's employer takes $300 a month out of his check pre tax to fund our health savings account. In return we have a credit card that we use to access though funds. Caremark is supposed to keep this card on file and charge it everytime they send a prescription. Well they haven't been doing it. They charge it every other time and now I have a $150 balance and they say b/c it's past due they can't legally charge it to my card and they refuse to give me any more medicine. So I have 2 options. I can either pay them $150 now and wait for reimbursement or include them with my BK filing. The problem is I don't have $150 and I just had this same argument with them in November. THey can't keep it straight. The guy says to me well Maam if you go to WalMArt and get groceries they won't let you leave without paying. I replied nobut when I go to WalMart and hand them a credit card they are smart enough to charge it. Duh! So I have $2K left on my card but they say they can't use that and I have no money to pay them with so will this go away if I include it in my BK?

[dingdong]

So you have 2K left on your HSA debit card and the retard pharmacy won't charge the card?

Can't you go to an ATM and take out the cash with the card?

I thought those things ( the cards) were supposed to work just like a debit card, and you don't pay tax on it when used for health care reasons.

Try calling and asking for a supervisor until you get someone who can charge the card properly. Sounds like stupid billing practices to me, try and get past the CSR level and see if someone can help you, especially since that is the only place you can get your meds ( Caremark)

[dingdong]

Here I found this. You should be able to withdraw the funds at a POS machine wth a debit transaction or an ATM if the HSA money is put on a debit card.

HSA participants do not have to obtain advance approval from their HSA trustee or their medical insurer to withdraw funds, and the funds are not subject to income taxation if made for qualified medical expenses. These include costs for services and items covered by the health plan but subject to cost sharing such as a deductible and coinsurance, or co-payments, as well as many other expenses not covered under medical plans, such as dental, vision and chiropractic care; durable medical equipment such as eyeglasses and hearing aids; and transportation expenses related to medical care. Non-prescription, over-the-counter medications are also eligible.[9] [10]

There are several ways that funds in an HSA can be withdrawn. Some HSAs include a debit card, some supply checks for account holder use, and some allow for a reimbursement process similar to medical insurance. Most HSAs have more than one possible method for withdrawal. The exact method of withdrawal varies from HSA to HSA and can be considered a marketing design issue. Checks and debits do not have to be made payable to the provider. Funds can be withdrawn for any reason, but withdrawals that are not for documented qualified medical expenses are subject to income taxes and a 10% penalty. The 10% tax penalty is waived for persons who have reached the age of 65 or have become disabled at the time of the withdrawal. Then, only income tax is paid on the withdrawal, and in effect the account has grown tax deferred (similar to an IRA). Medical expenses continue to be tax free.

Account holders are required to retain documentation for their qualified medical expenses. Failure to retain and provide documentation could cause the IRS to rule withdrawals were not for qualified medical expenses and subject the taxpayer to additional penalties.[11]

When a person dies, the funds in their HSA are transferred to the beneficiary named for the account. If the beneficiary is a surviving spouse, the transfer is tax-free.

[aces67]

It only works like a credit card and they are just too stupid to charge it and send my meds for free instead. They claim they can't bill past due balances to it but I'm almost certain they can. My kids dentist never estimates my portion right so now they don't charge me upfront they just charge my card after my insurance pays which is usually 30 days after the visit so I don't know why Caremark won't do the same and they won't let me talk to a supervisor. They keep putting me through to their Customer Resolution Specialist who keeps saying I'm sorry it's oversight on our part it happens but you still have to pay us and we can't get it off your card.

IDK. I'm going to call and talk to someone in dh's HR department tomorrow and see if they can help me.

[aces67]

You know I talked to my HSA rep and they said it's a credit card but now that you mention it I looked and it does say DEBIT on it. I'll call them back tomorrow. I don't remember getting a pin number with it but maybe I did and just don't remember it.

[doingpoorly]

So you have 2K left on your HSA debit card and the retard pharmacy won't charge the card?

Can't you go to an ATM and take out the cash with the card?

I thought those things ( the cards) were supposed to work just like a debit card, and you don't pay tax on it when used for health care reasons.

Some hsa cards are able to be used at atm's but as I recently found out not all are. Our hsa changed form one servicer to another last month and I tried to get money out of the atm to pay for a dr visit and it wouldn't work. It worked just fine at the atm last month so I kinda freaked. I called the has bank and they told me that I could only charge at the dr office/phamacy/whatever or write a check. They claimed to have sent me some checks but they didn't. I ordered some and so now I am all set. I would call the hsa bank and ask about getting checks, then you can send them one of those bad boys and be done with them.

[dingdong]

The way it is supposed to work is you can use the money for anything, but if you use it on a non allowed expense, you are subject to a 10% penalty.

If you have the receipts to back up the expense, then you are golden and not subject to the penalty if the IRS should audit that particular expenditure.

You should be able to have access to those funds, I would check the terms of your HSA account and see that the guidlines are for withdrawing cash.

If you were say disabled, couldn't walk and bought a used scooter second hand and obtained a receipt, you would be able to claim that as a medical expense. You just need an RX from a Dr and a recipt to back up the expense, so essentially you could take the money out of the HSA to cover that expense.

[aces67]

Okay saw I saw my lawyer yesterday and showed him the bill. I explained to him what had happened and he said too bad for so sad. He said it's not my fault they didn't take their money and they won't get it now b/c he's including it in my BK.

He did check first to be sure they can't refuse to fill my meds in the future but b/c dh's employer has them under contract they can't.

Now I just wait and see what happens.

[anime-chicka]

If it's a med that you can get at a regular pharmacy in their special $4/30 days, $10/90 days plan, ask your doctor to rewrite your prescription and have it sent to the pharmacy of your choice. Then use the card that way.

This is one of the many reasons why I will not use Caremark for my maintenance meds. I've been lucky so far in that the meds I am taking are part of the above mentioned special pricing, so I don't have to use them if I can help it.