Paul Sullivan writes this week, in his Wealth Matters column, about turning in desperation to a pediatrician who specializes in babies with sleep problems after many nights of trying to get his infant daughter to sleep for at least a few hours at a time.

The pediatrician quickly figured out what was causing the problem. But the pediatrician, who had driven up from Brooklyn to Paul’s home in Connecticut for the diagnosis, doesn’t take insurance. His fee was $650, and Paul’s insurance company ended up paying nothing on the claim.

Other doctors have also stopped dealing directly with insurance companies, Paul found, mostly because the whole process was frustrating and time-consuming. They argued that their time could be better spent with patients. This switch is mainly affecting primary care doctors and internists, whose reimbursement rates from insurance companies are the lowest among doctors.

With all the changes in health care and insurance, has your doctor gone this route, too? If so, what has been your experience — both with the care and with your insurer?

Article source: http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/23/the-650-doctors-bill/?partner=rss&emc=rss