DENVER — A mother is speaking out after she says incorrect labeling for her son's medical visits let to hundreds of dollars of incorrect billing.
"He called and said, 'I am really struggling,'" said the mother, who asked to remain anonymous to maintain her son's privacy. "I'm so grateful that he did call and said he was struggling because a lot of people didn't reach out."
Her son was referred to the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center at the University of Colorado. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the visits were all completed online. Her son's insurance plan with Anthem covered all virtual visits in 2020, so they expected to pay nothing for the psychotherapy visits.
"I don't think he's ever met the doctor in person. They've only talked virtually," she said.
So, it came as a surprise when her son started getting billed for his visits.
"They were $144.67 a visit, and there were 11 visits," she said. "So that added up to over $1,500."
In a statement to Denver7, a representative for Anthem said that situations like this need to be reconciled in the billing with the hospital. A representative with the CU Medical School declined to comment for the story before deadline.
All of the bills were paid when they came in, the mother confirms. Now that they are being contested, she says many of the incorrect bills sent have been reconciled and refunded, but several hundred dollars in refunds remain.
