New Jersey patient wins dispute of $9,200 bill for stomach ache

A New Jersey hospital emergency room billed a patient more than $9,000 for a stomach ache, and the patient won his challenge of the charges, according to Philly.com.

Five things to know:

1. Evan Acuna, 27, visited Capital Health Medical Center-Hopewell's emergency department in Pennington, N.J., two days after Thanksgiving, suspecting he had food poisoning.

2. Mr. Acuna, who was dehydrated, received two IVs of fluids in the emergency department, and within hours of receiving the IVs, he felt better and left the hospital, according to the news report.

3. Mr. Acuna later learned that the bill for his visit was $9,258. A large part of the bill was a $6,100 emergency department facility fee, which was based on how sick Mr. Acuna was.

4. Cigna, Mr. Acuna's insurance company, reportedly negotiated the rate down to $7,870 and paid $3,117. The 27-year-old's out-of-pocket costs were $4,752 because he had not yet met his plan's $5,000 deductible.

5. After Mr. Acuna fought the bill, the hospital agreed to reduce his portion to $779 because he was eligible for financial assistance, according to Philly.com, which cites a hospital statement. Mr. Acuna received a new bill in January and settled the matter. 

 

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