Insurance paid her hospital bill. So why does the hospital claim she still owes $1,474?

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — A Chesterfield woman says she's reconsidering getting preventative medical care in the future after spending hours disputing a bill from Bon Secours Mercy Health for a cancer screening that she said her insurance already paid for.

Heather Atkinson reached out to Investigative Reporter Melissa Hipolit for help resolving a billing issue that she said has consumed more than nine hours of her time on the phone with the hospital and her insurance company.

Because of a family history of breast cancer, Atkinson said her doctor ordered a preventative MRI for cancer screening on Dec. 24, 2024.

Thankfully, the results came back clear.

"Definitely wanted to get that done, have some peace of mind, and make sure it was all clear," Atkinson said.

Prior to the MRI, Atkinson says Bon Secours Mercy Health offered her the opportunity to pay upfront for a 10% discount, which she declined knowing her insurance, Aetna, would pay what she owed from her Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA).

"I don't want to put out money that I don't feel I'm going to owe," Atkinson said.

Atkinson showed Hipolit a record from her HRA that showed the $1,474.50 she owed for deductible and coinsurance had been pulled from her account. She also shared a letter sent from Aetna to Bon Secours Mercy Health indicating the portion of the bill she owed had been paid.

Despite this documentation, Atkinson continued to receive bills from the hospital chain for $1,474.50.

"It's been very stressful, and it's very important to me that it get resolved and not get sent to collections," she said.

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Atkinson said she had at least 15 phone calls with Bon Secours Mercy Health and Aetna, spending over nine hours trying to get the bill resolved.

"It was very challenging for me to actually make the time to continue to be on top of this the way that I have," she said.

From what she has been able to piece together, Atkinson said it sounded like she may be caught in the middle of a disagreement between her insurance and the hospital chain over the price of the MRI.

"That really doesn't have anything to do with me," she said. "I don't feel I should be responsible for that. You should work that out with Aetna and you should not place the burden on me to continue following up to get people to pursue this."

Atkinson decided to reach out to Hipolit after seeing previous stories she had done featuring patients experiencing billing issues with Bon Secours Mercy Health that resulted in positive resolutions.

Since Hipolit contacted Bon Secours Mercy Health, Atkinson said she received a phone call from a representative.

"She said, 'Apologies, unfortunately it wasn't escalated higher up previously.' And she apologized that it wasn't put on hold previously," she said. "She also indicated my account has been put on hold, and I should see a zero balance while they're working on it."

Atkinson's account now shows a zero balance with a notification that some charges are awaiting a response from insurance. Depending on that response, some or all of the $1,474.50 could become her responsibility.

Jenna Green with Bon Secours Mercy Health told Hipolit she could escalate the issue internally to ensure Atkinson receives a clear explanation or resolution. She said they would review the situation and follow up directly with Atkinson.

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