If they show "paid in full" or "You owe the provider 0" I keep them 2 months, then discard. Others , showing partial payments or "codes" I save for a year. I figure by then any payment issue will be resolved,if any. I'm on good terms with all my doctors, their staff phone me if there are any problems.

Maybe you can take pictures of them, then toss?

I keep all my records for at least 3 years--but then I'm the Queen Packrat.

You could scan them onto your hard drive and then easily delete them after a reasonable time.

or is that too much of a PIA?

I don't have many insurance claim forms but I only keep them I file my taxes in April unless there's some problem with it.

Yes, I save them. Lately, when I add newer ones to the file, I remove the same amount from the back of the file. Those old ones go back as far as 1983. Why have I been keeping them that long!? The same with all the papers that we bring home from the doctors appointments. A kind of record keeping that I need to change. Like, pitch all that stuff after entering any important info on a single running sheet that I can keep in the file for futue reference like date, who seen, why, etc.

I usually don't keep them for longer than a few weeks just to make sure everything is settled and I don't need to challenge anything.

You can easily request additional copies if you need them in the future. I know I can always have them mailed to me in the rare chance I'll need them so that puts less pressure on me to keep them. I've requested an entire year before from Blue Cross and they mail them in a nice little package.

Most insurance companies have these records on-line, if you register with a user-id/password, even if you get paper statements. This includes Medicare.

So, my response is No. I can print/save on my disk those details out from the website(s), whenever I want to reference them.

I despise paper.

I just got one from Blue Cross yesterday, showing payment for a February, 2010 billing. I don't know why it takes so long sometimes.

Definitely too much of a PIA, Maire. As is taking their pictures (same thing as scanning, actually). I'm encouraged by the responses I've received, and am tossing most of them in the trash as we speak. Freedom!!

Thanks, all!

I save ours for two years.

A few years ago our phone rang one evening, just before New Year's. It was a collector for a hospital. They were demanding additional payment on a surgery I'd had *almost* two years before. I was glad I had my file at hand. It took lots of back and forth before the hospital realized their mistake and called off their dogs. I just got that mess fixed days before we left for Maui.

Some years we have enough medical expenses to claim a deduction on our federal taxes. DH has had some expensive meds the last two years -- is already in 'the donut hole' this year. It seems prudent to keep the proof handy.

I have been keeping them all for a number of years. At the end of the year, I put them in a folder well labeled with the year, and stash them in an out of the way place in a closet.

Recently I got a statement from a facility I've been going to for years. Their statement shows a balance from a June 2007 visit, as well as a balance on a visit from April 2009.

I called and talked to them, and asked why they were just now showing up, and they said, blah, blah, blah, cleaning some things up.

I told them I wasn't denying the charges, but to please note that I had called and would be investigating things from my records and would be back in touch.

According to their statement, in both cases my insurance has paid their portion and the facility has made the 'adjustment' for accepting what my insurance allows.

My hard copy should show what was paid, when it was paid, as well as the check number.

I'm in no rush to take care of something they are just now billing for that is 4 years old, and I'm certainly not going to pay it without seeing that I for sure still owe it....sigh.

I've been keeping them too, but what a nuisance that big stack is. The only reason I have found them handy is if I cannot remember when I last saw Dr. Whoever or had a certain test, I can look it up by going through the forms.

Yes every one of them. We have had payment issues with different companies or doctors who come back a year or more and ask for an unpaid balance. We never ever have an unpaid balance so we always have the paperwork to prove it.

I had a similar experiance to chemocurl. I had knee replacement surgery in 2004. The hospital billed my insurance co and then billed me for my portion of $2200. I paid immediately on receiving the bill and filed the paperwork away. Just before I retired in 2008 I got a dunning notice from a collection agency for the amount the insurance did not pay. It took about 2 months to convince them that the hospital had to accept the amount the insurance company paid and I did not owe them anything. It took getting the hospital involved. They claimed they "did not know" how the collection agency got my info. I, on the other hand, believe that the hospital turned it over for collection hoping I would be senile enough to pay it. (JMO)

Phyllis....it sometimes can take a year or more for a billing to be reconciled - especially Medicare.

In today's world, doctors and their billing staff have to spend many hours (of non-billable time) getting insurance companies to pay claims that are declined multiple times - especially Medicare.

Often, claims are submitted 2/3/4 times before an insurer agrees to pay....most arguments are over wording, etc.

The most valuable person in a medical practitioner's office is a billing person who knows which wording Medicare and all the other Insurance companies will accept(and none of them seem to agree on diagnostic wording or code usage).

Because of my unusual problems, I have seen claims from several doctors, labs and hospitals show up as refused, then re-submitted until the insurer decides to pay.

In the mean time, the doctor/lab/hospital is not getting one red cent for months, and most doctors will not charge the patient until the bill is settled.

It might depend on your medical staff. Here we have Trinity it is hospital and doctors etc. I keep everything because they keep changing computer services. Also with a new CEO they are updating so much. With medicare it does take longer and they and blue cross turn down too much because the Dr's code wrong or ????
I have had them go back 3 years etc. Also BC will audit so many claims and either adjust or deny claims. This happens alot.
So far they have been very good about resubmitting claims.
Another thing, with DH's medical problems, it helps us keep track on what Dr he saw and what tests and procedures were done.

I keep the blue cross statements with the matching medicare statement in a notebook with a brief note on the front of the MC statement what dates are covered and if BC paid or not.
Easy once you start.
Marie

I have not only ours, but have been over the years caregiver for both my mother and aunt.

I'd highly recommend keeping them for at least several years. Just about a week ago, I got an EOB from her supplemental for Aunt (who died in Jan) for a service that was performed in Dec. Reasons you need to keep them for a while: not all facilities bill promptly--you often need to go 6 months back to make sure benefits are coordinating properly; if you end up in an estate situation, you sometimes need those records; often you think a bill is taken care of, an the facility thinks it's NOT*; also, aside from the financial aspects, those are a great addition to your health record (what year was it I had my appendectomy?)--everything is on them, and you can refer to them. There's also the tax stituation--you need to be able to verify your health deductions--what you paid, what was paid for you, etc.

*We've had a problem with this just recently. I was in the ER last August, DH paid the bill IN FULL, IN CASH and got a Paid in full receipt the beginning of SEPT (2011). We've been billed at least 5 times since for a portion of that bill. Each time we've addressed the issue, sending proof we paid it--and been told the matter was cleared off our account. And just a few weeks ago, I got a letter saying they would be turning the matter over to collections--I have been told one more time that our account is cleared. The gal I spoke to seemed surprised that I wanted written proof (????????) I got a printout of the account with a 0 balance, but I'm not wholely convinced yet....

I cannot tell you how many times, for one reason or another, I've had to refer back to those records years later. I'd hang on to them--neatly organized, of course.