Author Topic: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?  (Read 6376 times)

MrsCoolCat

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Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« on: February 10, 2017, 12:21:34 PM »
Quick question. My insurance doesn't cover breast pumps, the free one or any during labor hospital stays. The nurses "encouraged" me to use their hospital grade breast pump, and the hospital overall gets funding to push breastfeeding. Is there any chance or way I can "fight" this $157 charge? I should just let it go but I'm either bringing my own or denying it next time. First time moms are like first time brides... I just get frustrated with all the random charges & unnecessary items that I don't know I don't need. Ty in adv.
« Last Edit: February 10, 2017, 12:29:38 PM by MrsCoolCat »

BeanCounter

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #1 on: February 10, 2017, 12:25:39 PM »
Are you talking about the hospital grade one the keep in the room and let you use? And you don't take it home? If so, that is a ridiculous charge for that. I would call the hospital and explain to them that your insurance won't cover it and see if you can negotiate it down. You will have to pay for the parts that are for your use only that you take home. But that should only be like $30-$50.

Cranky

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #2 on: February 10, 2017, 12:28:04 PM »
I thought all insurance had to cover a breast pump now?

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #3 on: February 10, 2017, 12:28:14 PM »
Are you talking about the hospital grade one the keep in the room and let you use? And you don't take it home? If so, that is a ridiculous charge for that. I would call the hospital and explain to them that your insurance won't cover it and see if you can negotiate it down. You will have to pay for the parts that are for your use only that you take home. But that should only be like $30-$50.

Yes, the hospital grade one! And while we're at it the nurse straight up told me on my last night there to take the attachments bc they will charge me for it anyways. I was like what? She kinda made it seem like I signed off on something but when I called they just said they charge for what I use, which good point should only be the attachments.

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #4 on: February 10, 2017, 12:31:12 PM »
I thought all insurance had to cover a breast pump now?

They usually do bc of the Affordable Care Act, but my company is backwards & grandfathered in not to cover that one breast pump for expecting moms. Go figure.

Landlady

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #5 on: February 10, 2017, 02:52:22 PM »
Typically a hospital will help you with the bill if you pay a portion of it. I'd call their billing department and tell them that you can pay $x of it and see where the conversation takes you. Tell them you were unclear in the moment about what you really needed and made a mistake and cannot afford it.
Hospitals expect a lot of people to not pay anything at all so offering to pay some may help them strike the rest.

SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #6 on: February 10, 2017, 07:30:50 PM »
You can rent it for a month for less than half of that! (At least in 2012 that was the cost). Of course you use your parts.

MrsPete

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #7 on: February 11, 2017, 08:28:54 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #8 on: February 11, 2017, 08:40:12 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

So what did you do to get the milk out when you were at work all day?

I'm a red panda

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #9 on: February 11, 2017, 09:09:33 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

So what did you do to get the milk out when you were at work all day?

Agree.  Did you just let yourself get engorged for the 9 hours you were gone while working full time?  How did you supply milk to daycare?  What did you do on multi-day business trips?

Breast pumps are very necessary for a lot of people.

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #10 on: February 11, 2017, 10:17:00 AM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.

Poundwise

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #11 on: February 11, 2017, 11:08:19 AM »
Maybe you could talk to your OB or midwife and see whether you had a prescription?  I think I recall one of my midwives saying that she could write a prescription for a pump, but I already had one that my friend passed down to me.  Anyway, I would ask your doctors whether they have any advice on getting reimbursed. I find that often they have tips on how to work the system.

MrsPete

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #12 on: February 12, 2017, 12:32:25 PM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

So what did you do to get the milk out when you were at work all day?
I was home with each one about six months, and when I went back to work I'd nurse them before going to work at 7:00 ... they'd have their solid foods mid-day ... and then I'd sit down to nurse them the very minute I picked them up around 3:00 ... they'd have solids again at dinner time ... and then I'd nurse again at bedtime.  Worked fine. 

Your body will make milk at the times you demand it, so if you don't feed during the day, milk will not build up during the day. 


MrsPete

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #13 on: February 12, 2017, 12:34:49 PM »
Agree.  Did you just let yourself get engorged for the 9 hours you were gone while working full time?  How did you supply milk to daycare?  What did you do on multi-day business trips?

Breast pumps are very necessary for a lot of people.
Like most people, my job doesn't involve travel.  I think I'm in the vast majority in not having needed a breast pump.  Like I said, four years of breastfeeding.  I never used formula.  It wasn't hard. 

MrsPete

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #14 on: February 12, 2017, 12:36:24 PM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.
I don't quite understand what you're saying ... colostrum is what you get in the first few days after birth; it'll gradually be replaced by milk within a couple days, and that milk'll change over the months as the baby grows and his or her needs change. 

SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #15 on: February 12, 2017, 01:33:25 PM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

So what did you do to get the milk out when you were at work all day?
I was home with each one about six months, and when I went back to work I'd nurse them before going to work at 7:00 ... they'd have their solid foods mid-day ... and then I'd sit down to nurse them the very minute I picked them up around 3:00 ... they'd have solids again at dinner time ... and then I'd nurse again at bedtime.  Worked fine. 

Your body will make milk at the times you demand it, so if you don't feed during the day, milk will not build up during the day.

You stayed at home for 6 months breastfeeding all day. That alone makes your experience different than majority of full time working moms in the US. Majority of working women do not get 6 months to stay at home. So your comment about pumping being "completely unnecessary" does not apply for aa typical working mom in the US. Plus your work hours also do not reflect a typical full time job. You are gone a total of 8 hours including lunch and commute.

Also there are babies who just won't latch and will need to be bottle fed. Or babies who are born too early to breastfeed directly. So just because YOU did not need to pump doesn't mean it is completely unnecessary!
« Last Edit: February 12, 2017, 01:43:25 PM by SKL-HOU »

bugbaby

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #16 on: February 12, 2017, 01:51:23 PM »
Oh, No! Not the Breast Wars!

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk


SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #17 on: February 12, 2017, 01:53:01 PM »
Oh, No! Not the Breast Wars!

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

😃😂

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #18 on: February 12, 2017, 05:04:25 PM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.
I don't quite understand what you're saying ... colostrum is what you get in the first few days after birth; it'll gradually be replaced by milk within a couple days, and that milk'll change over the months as the baby grows and his or her needs change.

Idk why the nurses "encouraged" me to use their hospital pump when all I had was colostrum...

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #19 on: February 12, 2017, 05:09:52 PM »
You stayed at home for 6 months breastfeeding all day. That alone makes your experience different than majority of full time working moms in the US. Majority of working women do not get 6 months to stay at home. So your comment about pumping being "completely unnecessary" does not apply for aa typical working mom in the US. Plus your work hours also do not reflect a typical full time job. You are gone a total of 8 hours including lunch and commute.

Also there are babies who just won't latch and will need to be bottle fed. Or babies who are born too early to breastfeed directly. So just because YOU did not need to pump doesn't mean it is completely unnecessary!

Seriously, I think the majority of women need to pump & don't have her schedule. And breastfeeding is not easy. Formula supplementing is a must sometimes.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #20 on: February 12, 2017, 05:23:13 PM »
Oh, No! Not the Breast Wars!

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Anyway to feed a baby is a good way, as long as they get proper nutrients.

But it is absurd to say a breast pump is completely unnecessary, cute working full time, and then reveal you had 6 months (!!) off and a work schedule that is extremely rare in this country.

Poundwise

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #21 on: February 12, 2017, 06:34:00 PM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.
I don't quite understand what you're saying ... colostrum is what you get in the first few days after birth; it'll gradually be replaced by milk within a couple days, and that milk'll change over the months as the baby grows and his or her needs change.

Idk why the nurses "encouraged" me to use their hospital pump when all I had was colostrum...

Well, (as you probably know by now) the amount that you nurse today influences the amount of milk you'll make tomorrow.  So for instance if you skip a feeding at 11am today, tomorrow at 11am you'll find your supply decreased.  So maybe they wanted to make sure that your milk would come in well, in case the baby was not nursing strongly enough to stimulate good lactation.

That said, it is very annoying that your insurance company will not pay!!! I would definitely ask both hospital and company if they could work it out for you as a "one time" thing.

 

LouLou

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #22 on: February 12, 2017, 06:46:53 PM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.
I don't quite understand what you're saying ... colostrum is what you get in the first few days after birth; it'll gradually be replaced by milk within a couple days, and that milk'll change over the months as the baby grows and his or her needs change.

Idk why the nurses "encouraged" me to use their hospital pump when all I had was colostrum...

Was your baby having trouble latching? I needed to pump in the beginning because it took my daughter a while to understand how to latch on and drink. I had a hospital grade pump in the hospital, and then rented one for a month when I got home.  After the first month, we were breastfeeding normally (with nipple shields exclusively).

SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #23 on: February 12, 2017, 06:59:29 PM »
You stayed at home for 6 months breastfeeding all day. That alone makes your experience different than majority of full time working moms in the US. Majority of working women do not get 6 months to stay at home. So your comment about pumping being "completely unnecessary" does not apply for aa typical working mom in the US. Plus your work hours also do not reflect a typical full time job. You are gone a total of 8 hours including lunch and commute.

Also there are babies who just won't latch and will need to be bottle fed. Or babies who are born too early to breastfeed directly. So just because YOU did not need to pump doesn't mean it is completely unnecessary!

Seriously, I think the majority of women need to pump & don't have her schedule. And breastfeeding is not easy. Formula supplementing is a must sometimes.

Exactly! She could not have done what she did, even with her work schedule, in the first 6 months anyway because obviously the baby wouldn't wait for her to come home. so i suppose if you don't mind your baby going hungry all day, you could see a pump as completely unnecessary :)

SKL-HOU

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #24 on: February 12, 2017, 07:04:41 PM »
Mine was colostrum so the breast pump was somewhat unnecessary then? Idk. Newbie here.
I don't quite understand what you're saying ... colostrum is what you get in the first few days after birth; it'll gradually be replaced by milk within a couple days, and that milk'll change over the months as the baby grows and his or her needs change.

Idk why the nurses "encouraged" me to use their hospital pump when all I had was colostrum...

They probably encouraged you so your milk builds up. To be honest the hospital grade pumps are so much better.

obstinate

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #25 on: February 13, 2017, 12:32:40 AM »
Your body will make milk at the times you demand it, so if you don't feed during the day, milk will not build up during the day.
Wow. People are dangerously uninformed about their own anatomy. For new or expecting mom's reading this: this just is not true.

Krolik

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #26 on: February 13, 2017, 08:44:44 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

Great for your MrsPete, but many women need breast pumps and in many cases they are necessary and help tremendously new moms.

honeybbq

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #27 on: February 13, 2017, 10:08:57 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

I mostly object to the post statement of it being 'completely unnecessary' as if it is some sort of ridiculous luxury item. That is silly. A much better way to state it is 'I didn't need one but you might."

I started pumping after about a month so my spouse and family members could feed my daughter while I was out, sleeping, traveling, etc. I traveled for a week when she was a year old and kept all my milk and brought it back on ice. I worked full time after my 3 month leave was up and found the pump vital to keeping up my supply. I had an electric pump for work and a small manual one as well. I did not pump in the hospital, however, and have no experience with the charges there.  The hospital did give me the free manual one that I used.

I bought my pump from amazon and considered it worth the price. 

I ended up nursing for 1.25 years.

« Last Edit: February 13, 2017, 10:13:05 AM by honeybbq »

historienne

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #28 on: February 13, 2017, 10:44:05 AM »
Breast pumps are completely unnecessary.  I nursed two children a total of almost four years, working full time for about half that time, and didn't have /want one.

Um, good for you?  This seems 100% irrelevant to the OP's post.

OP, I would at least try negotiating with the hospital.  One side effect of the ACA's coverage for lactation support is that hospitals are probably inclined to provide it to everyone and charge for it, since they assume it will be covered.  They may have some flexibility for the few people who are not covered under the ACA.

MrsCoolCat

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Re: Can u fight a breast pump bill from hospital stay for labor?
« Reply #29 on: February 16, 2017, 06:19:49 AM »

Was your baby having trouble latching? I needed to pump in the beginning because it took my daughter a while to understand how to latch on and drink. I had a hospital grade pump in the hospital, and then rented one for a month when I got home.  After the first month, we were breastfeeding normally (with nipple shields exclusively).

Thank you everyone for the responses. I think I had a similar case to you regarding the trouble latching. Pretty much flatter nipples that nipple shields could resolve, yet I kinda wondered why the nurse didn't just give me a $10-$20 pair of nipple shields first instead of suggesting the $157 breast pump. Plus the fact that at the end she told me to take the attachments bc I'm gonna be charged for it anyway. Umm so like you knew? But OK. I'll wait until the hospital gets paid from the insurance & then call and ask.