77055 Mammogram one breast

I am 58 and I have needed the diagnostic breast exam due to density of my breasts. Once I began annual preventative procedures this is something I am well aware of. I am also on HRT which is another good reason to do annual mammograms. However, this last September I received a letter from the hospital doing my procedure that I do not have dense breasts and I would not receive any procedure other than the imaging. Since I do keep up with my annual preventative care I went ahead and did what they told me to do. Within two weeks I received a phone call telling me that there are certain areas that need to be RE screened. Before scheduling that appointment the woman told me that I would have to pay $200 dollars up front towards my deductible. I then called my Dr. and spent a lot of time and talked to several nurses about why I didn’t get the proper diagnostic tests done in the first place and what I learned is that in the future, I will have to have the Dr. send an order for my mammogram to be a diagnostic exam, just like it has been done in the past two years. My choice this year is not to have the follow up exam and then next year make sure that I have the correct orders to get it all done in my preventative appointment that is 100% covered by insurance. I have done the follow up years before and the results are normal tissue, but hard to see without diagnostic testing. I guess I am willing to gamble this year because I feel that the insurance system and the hospital are manipulating my healthcare costs to benefit themselves and I will not be treated this way. i can afford the $200 dollars up front, but do not know what the hidden charges will be, therefor I will wait. My husband isn’t too happy with my choice but he does accept that it is my body-my decisions

This was a "dense breast follow up" from mammogram a month ago. It included ultrasound. Appointment for needle biopsy in a week.

Plan discount of $22.37

I had my yearly mammogram this summer and they asked me to come back for a follow-up because of an anomaly. On 8-2-19 I had my follow-up mammogram on one breast. Then they asked me to come in for an ultra sound, which I did on 8-6-19. The tests came back negative, but the bill for the ultra-sound was $394.68, of which my insurance paid $34.32. So between my second mammogram and the ultra-sound, insurance paid $81.44 and I was billed $781.69. Guess what? They want me to come back in 6 months, which I'm sure will not be covered. So I won't be going back until a year passes and I know the mammogram will be covered. Here's the kicker...my first mammogram of BOTH my breasts (my yearly that was covered) before insurance, totaled $143.00. Insurance paid for all of that. But my second mammogram, on only ONE breast, was $387.01. I questioned this with billing but did not get a satisfactory answer. Why is one breast billed over twice as much as two? Some background: my husband was one of the last people to retire from Maytag in Newton, Iowa before Whirlpool shut it down. Then Whirlpool forced the retirees to pay for part of their health insurance. That was when we got on the ACA which was much more affordable. Thankfully, we are healthy and rarely reach our deductible for the year, which is why these out-of-pocket costs hit so hard. I have included a scan of my bill which also includes an x-ray of my thumb that was done on the same day as the mammogram (unrelated, but the x-ray went toward my deductible as well and added another $202.00 to my bill).

This happened to me as well. I got an unexpected bill for a second look at my right breast. I was never told United Healthcare would not cover the cost. Had I been told it would be an out of pocket expense, I would have declined the service. I was appalled that I had to pay for this additional expense. While I could have put the fee on my MasterCard, I chose to make the imaging service wait for my money. I paid $40/month until I paid the balance. I even felt the imaging center made stuff up, to make money off people like me. We need our voices heard so that those greedy insurance companies pay for services that we pay for through those EXTREMELY expensive monthly premiums. I am not joking when I say, I would much rather do without medical care because it is simply unaffordable even with insurance.

Call back for re screening of one breast. Insurance does not cover second screening.

Follow up mammogram for dense tissue

Breast cancer survivor, still recovering. Only had 1 breast mamagramed and ultrasound at the cancer hospital, as my surgeon requested. Now im stuck with the bill and my surgeon said i need another mamagram on both breasts in November. The costs are outrageous. Thought i was covered by my insurance but i guess not. Probably wont go for testing in November, its too costly.

Had my annual mammogram that was covered by Tufts Health Plan. A few days later, I got a letter to schedule a follow up mammogram. Due to dense breast tissue, the doctor needed to check a specific area with an ultrasound. After the service, I got a bill. I called my insurance and stated that the doctor requested the additional tests and should be under preventative. I was told it was NOT covered and I had to pay $464.34 for the ultrasound. I informed the insurance carrier that I was asked to schedule a follow up appointment in 6 months. I was told that I would have to pay for the followup appointment as well. I told them that I was very disappointed since this is all preventative testing.

After my initial mammogram, I was called back for a more in depth look regarding a lump in my breast. I was informed that my doctor had ordered a second mammogram and an ultrasound on my breast. Believing these procedures would be covered by my health insurance, I proceeded to receive these necessary diagnostic tests. Unbeknownst to me, these procedures are NOT covered by my insurance carrier. I therefore received a bill in the amount of $588.51 for diagnostic testing which is necessary to detect breast cancer. I'm still paying off this bill and after contacting my insurance company I have also been told that any follow up testing or seeking a second doctors opinion will NOT be covered by my insurance! I still have a lump in my breast and at this time I cannot even afford to seek a second opinion. I find this situation to be incredibly frustrating and it makes me angry. I feel scammed by my insurance company. After all, what is the point in paying for health insurance if it's not available when you need it?!

There was a $1,479.71 "adjustment" made towards this claim. This bill was for the "facility charge" and was one of 2 bills I received for the followup mammogram and ultrasound. The second bill I received was from Metrowest Radiology for imaging fees. The total of that bill was $349 and after adjustments, I paid $179 out of pocket. I HAD THIS SAME EXPERIENCE TEN MONTHS PRIOR. I have dense breast tissue and was called back for additional images after my annual mammogram screening on June 12 2018. At that time I had AETNA Insurance. Between the 2 bills I received for additional images taken on August 9 2018, I paid $381.38 out of pocket. I am l grateful I can afford these additional, sometimes stressful scans. I imagine women with financial limitations would absolutely consider avoiding mammograms if there is a risk of additional screening that is not covered by insurance. BETWEEN AUGUST 9 2018 and JUNE 20 2019 I PAID $1,019.61 out of pocket for followup images that confirmed healthy tissue. You are welcome to contact me to with follow up questions. I have copies of my bills. Thanks for bringing this issue to light. I paid these bills without much of a thought, and now believe insurance companies need to adjust benefits to cover most of or all of these additional screenings as needed. As a healthy 50 year old woman with a lifelong history of dense breast tissue, I'm now left questioning how I will respond if and when I receive another request for additional scans. Thanks again. Christine

This was ordered after I paid for 1st mammogram and ultra sound. Lump was found and got bigger had to go back for another mammogram and ultrasound then biopsy. Still paying on this bill.

I had my annual mammogram. The technician told me at the time that they will be calling me back because my test from last year was clear and this time there were 2 spots. I had to go for a second mammogram, an ultrasound, and an MRI. I was diagnosed with breast cancer, DCIS, and had a lumpectomy and 8 weeks of radiation. I do have health insurance but the bills came to over $86,000.00. I have about $6000.00 in bills that I have to pay and have been unable. They have so many fundraisers and preach so much about getting checked for breast cancer but what they don't tell you is the fine line..that you are only allowed one mammogram a year and the rest of the preventive stuff you have to pay for.