How To Take Control When Claims Are Rejected

Here is a copy of an article, "Fight for Your Health Care", which appeared in Parade Magazine on Sunday, January 20th. The article offers five steps to help patients take control when health insurance claims are rejected. One of those steps is to get outside help, from advocacy organizations.

Parade Magazine's website offers the following resources to help consumers learn about health-care rights in the states and how to exercise them:

• For information on what special mandates your state has for health insurers, see the report of the Council on Affordable Health Insurance.
• To learn whether your state has a law providing an independent review of denied benefits, see the charts created by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
• For step-by-step guidance to challenging health plan decisions, see the Consumer Guide to Handling Disputes with Your Employer or Private Health Plan, created by Kaiser Family Foundation.
• To learn what new laws your state is considering about health care, see the National Patient Advocate Foundation website.

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