Medical Insurance Insists on Direct Billing for Dude's Surgery, Gets Hit With More Expensive Bill

Ally Perry • Writer and Editor

Jul 23, 2022 1:00 PM EDT

Getting sick or injured is a scary prospect wherever you live in the world, but in some places it's more frightening than others. Healthcare costs money, and it's never fun when you have to shoulder that burden yourself. In a country like the US, every other person probably has a horror story about making health insurance claims, but it's not the only place where this can happen.

Proof of this is the cousin of u/FresnoMac, who had to deal with some annoying specifics from his health insurance company after seeking them out to cover his ligament reconstruction surgery. The American company insisted on billing the practioner, in India, directly. Despite attempting to convince them of how few Indian doctors would accept direct billing from a foreign insurance company, they held out. However, he managed to have the last laugh when he found one of the best (and most expensive) hospitals were one of the only ones who would accept this type of payment.

While Redditors were happy for his win, many Americans couldn't help but point out that comparatively speaking, the expensive treatment he received in India was pocket change in the US. At least he got the best care he could possibly receive.