WEBVTT - Ask HTM - Student Loans in Administrative Forbearance, Intentionally Entering into Collections, and Financial Infidelity #1102 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:03.159 Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel, I'm Matt. Today 0:00:03.360 --> 0:00:05.040 we're answering your listener questions. 0:00:23.560 --> 0:00:25.319 You know what, buddy, let's get after it. We're gonna 0:00:25.320 --> 0:00:28.400 hear directly from listeners. We've got a listener who's asking 0:00:28.440 --> 0:00:31.000 what he should be doing about his student loans that 0:00:31.080 --> 0:00:36.000 are in for bearans. Another listener is actually looking forward 0:00:36.040 --> 0:00:39.320 to collections. Could this be a strategy, Joel, We'll talk 0:00:39.360 --> 0:00:44.519 about what he's thinking about. And another listener actually encountered 0:00:44.520 --> 0:00:48.960 some financial infidelity, and so I'm gonna uncomfortably wait into 0:00:49.320 --> 0:00:52.320 playing financial counselor maybe, and we'll see what kind of 0:00:52.360 --> 0:00:54.400 terrible advice that we give in that section of the 0:00:54.600 --> 0:00:56.480 How the Money podcast. You didn't even sleep at a 0:00:56.520 --> 0:00:58.600 holiday and I didn't even do it. Man, I'm still 0:00:58.640 --> 0:01:02.040 gonna try. Well, hey, you've got this thing about Shutterfly here, 0:01:02.080 --> 0:01:04.520 we got like a new sponsorship or something. No no, no, no, 0:01:05.280 --> 0:01:07.760 new affiliate code. So I was not even that. 0:01:08.240 --> 0:01:13.080 I was curious because I have a lot of photos 0:01:13.480 --> 0:01:15.480 that I don't really have backed up, and I guess 0:01:15.480 --> 0:01:17.880 I could just like buy a cheap hard drive and 0:01:18.240 --> 0:01:20.640 download everything from my phone and send it over to 0:01:20.680 --> 0:01:23.440 a hard drive, but it would be nice to have 0:01:23.520 --> 0:01:27.160 them stored in the cloud somewhere. Oh yeah, and I could. 0:01:27.400 --> 0:01:29.160 I'm you know, you know this about me, I'm kind 0:01:29.160 --> 0:01:32.039 of cheap. Sometimes at times I can be cheap, and 0:01:32.080 --> 0:01:35.160 so I'm wondering, I don't pay for the Apple Cloud. 0:01:35.600 --> 0:01:38.639 What's it called? Apple Cloud? iCloud, I Cloud? Okay cloud? 0:01:38.640 --> 0:01:41.959 I should have done that. Are you pasted? You? We talked, 0:01:42.280 --> 0:01:43.880 We talked about this last week. It's that's what the 0:01:43.880 --> 0:01:46.959 ice stands were. I looked it up while I was 0:01:47.040 --> 0:01:50.720 editing that podcast that episode. It was Internet because I think, 0:01:50.720 --> 0:01:54.440 I really because before then the computers weren't always directly 0:01:55.040 --> 0:01:56.880 like tied or tethered to the Internet or something. So 0:01:56.920 --> 0:01:59.560 evidently it was like, oh yeah, this stands for this 0:02:00.160 --> 0:02:03.320 that is now interfacing with the Internet's with the World 0:02:03.320 --> 0:02:04.280 Wide webs. 0:02:04.080 --> 0:02:06.280 Well it works well because nobody thinks of it like 0:02:06.320 --> 0:02:08.120 that anymore, and they just think, isn't it No, it's 0:02:08.160 --> 0:02:08.680 the Mac for me. 0:02:08.960 --> 0:02:11.799 Yeah. Actually, I was thinking when you said that, oh yeah, 0:02:11.800 --> 0:02:13.600 it probably is more of like because it's it was 0:02:13.639 --> 0:02:15.600 sort of like that era where you had all that 0:02:15.680 --> 0:02:19.280 cool ads with the silhouettes dancing with you know that. Yeah, 0:02:19.440 --> 0:02:21.640 I was with you. I wasn't gonna question it, but 0:02:21.680 --> 0:02:22.200 I did look it. 0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:26.280 Up so I could pay for the cloud via Apple 0:02:26.480 --> 0:02:28.119 and a dollar a dollar a month. 0:02:28.120 --> 0:02:30.440 I think, right, you get no five, you get five 0:02:30.480 --> 0:02:33.840 gigabytes for free, right, So did you really? I think? 0:02:33.880 --> 0:02:33.960 So? 0:02:34.120 --> 0:02:36.519 Okay, Well, it keeps giving me this warning over and over, 0:02:36.680 --> 0:02:37.799 like your stuff's not backed up. 0:02:37.800 --> 0:02:40.320 Or probably because you've filled it. Yeah, that's probably it. Yeah, 0:02:40.400 --> 0:02:40.960 you filled it up. 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:42.600 And I'm like, well, I don't want to pay you 0:02:42.639 --> 0:02:45.520 money every month. It feels like blackmail, and so leave 0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:48.040 me alone. And maybe I should just get over that. 0:02:48.120 --> 0:02:50.919 But I was curious because actually this was the biggest 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:53.320 reason to have a Google Pixel phone back in the day. 0:02:53.440 --> 0:02:55.320 The automatic Google photo storage. 0:02:55.400 --> 0:02:58.720 Google basically said hey, you get unlimited photo storage. And 0:02:58.760 --> 0:03:00.160 I was like, this is one of those things to 0:03:00.280 --> 0:03:01.720 keep me with Pixel when they got rid of it, 0:03:01.760 --> 0:03:03.600 so I was like, well, you've lost your edge. 0:03:03.760 --> 0:03:05.639 So the question is do you still have those photos 0:03:05.720 --> 0:03:07.240 or did you lose them to the cloud? 0:03:07.760 --> 0:03:09.960 All the photos that yet, that's a really good question. 0:03:10.160 --> 0:03:11.920 I don't know if I know, like I feel that's 0:03:12.120 --> 0:03:15.160 they're probably lingering somewhere, but they might be like okay, 0:03:15.160 --> 0:03:15.760 it's a hardware. 0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:17.919 Yeah, all right, give me the give me the Shutterfly 0:03:18.000 --> 0:03:19.400 tie in. Okay, where this is going? 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:22.200 So Shutterfly, I was like, looking this up, I was like, 0:03:22.200 --> 0:03:27.600 who offers free photo storage? And nobody really does anymore. 0:03:27.880 --> 0:03:30.000 It used to be flicker. Flicker used to was oh yeah, 0:03:30.160 --> 0:03:33.400 back or is it? What is it twenty ten? I mean, 0:03:33.720 --> 0:03:38.640 come on, buddy, But Shutterfly apparently says you can get 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:42.440 free unlimited photo storage if you buy a product once 0:03:42.480 --> 0:03:45.080 every eighteen months. Okay, And I was like, that seems 0:03:45.120 --> 0:03:47.320 like a reasonable trade off, because no, I'm not paying 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:48.680 somebody money every single month. 0:03:48.720 --> 0:03:51.480 How much did you say? Like how much storage? It's unlimited? Really? 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:54.640 I think it's unlimited. Oh fascinating. Wait is it unlimited 0:03:54.640 --> 0:03:56.840 for the photos that you upload in order to create 0:03:56.880 --> 0:03:58.440 the product that they're selling you? 0:03:58.440 --> 0:03:58.520 No? 0:03:58.680 --> 0:04:00.640 I think like literally, you can just be like I 0:04:00.640 --> 0:04:04.280 think all your photos. I think so, yeah, maybe I 0:04:04.360 --> 0:04:05.560 need to go look at the fine print. Sorry for 0:04:05.600 --> 0:04:10.120 the sound effect, the pretty sure that maybe I yeah, 0:04:10.240 --> 0:04:12.320 unconsciously did the sound effect because that's what I think 0:04:12.360 --> 0:04:14.960 about it. I think it's fine. First of all, I 0:04:15.000 --> 0:04:17.360 love that you searched. Is there a I'm sure you 0:04:17.480 --> 0:04:20.040 chatted it or whatever, like, is there a free option 0:04:20.120 --> 0:04:22.600 out there? Because I appreciate that that you're out there 0:04:22.600 --> 0:04:24.240 looking for You're looking for the deal, trying to find 0:04:24.240 --> 0:04:26.720 the work around. But the reason I asked about your 0:04:26.720 --> 0:04:28.640 Google Photos is because it can be so hard to 0:04:28.680 --> 0:04:30.320 keep up with all these different accounts for sure, and 0:04:30.400 --> 0:04:33.000 which photos you have stored all over the place. And 0:04:33.080 --> 0:04:35.120 this is coming from someone who has had a lot 0:04:35.120 --> 0:04:37.640 of experience when it comes to storing photos. I used 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:41.120 to be a photographer, had tons, like tons and tons 0:04:41.200 --> 0:04:44.479 of terabytes of images and files. And before that, I 0:04:44.520 --> 0:04:47.560 was a designer, and so my illustrator files, on my 0:04:47.600 --> 0:04:49.599 photoshop files like these were all files that I wanted 0:04:49.640 --> 0:04:52.440 to own and possess and to keep on my person 0:04:52.600 --> 0:04:57.919 And I personally resisted the cloud, but I ultimately I 0:04:57.960 --> 0:04:59.760 don't keep up with all the different spots where I've 0:04:59.760 --> 0:05:03.520 got on files, all my pictures stashed. We as a family, 0:05:03.520 --> 0:05:05.840 pay for the upgraded, upgraded ic cloud. 0:05:05.839 --> 0:05:07.440 Okay, so you can get a family account as well, 0:05:07.480 --> 0:05:09.880 so we can kind of store it together. 0:05:09.920 --> 0:05:11.760 Pay one thing, yeah yeah, yeah, okay, So that's that's 0:05:11.800 --> 0:05:14.120 the benefit. Is I pay one price for the two terabytes. 0:05:14.160 --> 0:05:17.919 It's ten bucks a month. And guess what all my 0:05:17.960 --> 0:05:20.440 photos are on there? Kate's iPhones backed up, My iPhone's 0:05:20.480 --> 0:05:22.760 backed up, my computer's backed up, the laptops backed up 0:05:22.800 --> 0:05:25.760 to that. That shared family plan. It makes it a 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:29.040 little bit easier to get in there and control screen 0:05:29.080 --> 0:05:32.120 time settings. Her old ast oughters. Her iPhone is backed 0:05:32.160 --> 0:05:35.680 up onto there as well. It's I love how integrated 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:38.560 it is. Maybe do the ability to be able to 0:05:38.600 --> 0:05:41.840 look back at pictures from like twenty five years ago, 0:05:42.279 --> 0:05:45.200 like the featured photos. I love that. Yeah, I love 0:05:45.240 --> 0:05:49.599 that We've talked about memory dividends and having those images 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:53.080 as pictures like at your fingertips. I think it's worth 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:55.640 it personally, and this is this is something I've done 0:05:55.680 --> 0:05:57.560 in the I guess maybe last year, a couple of 0:05:57.600 --> 0:05:59.760 years ago is when I finally said, all right, I'm 0:05:59.760 --> 0:06:03.600 gonna move all my entire photo library, you know, onto 0:06:03.640 --> 0:06:05.800 the cloud and under the web, as opposed to it 0:06:05.880 --> 0:06:08.279 living on a single single device that was backed up. 0:06:08.760 --> 0:06:12.440 But personally, I think it's I think it's massively worth okay, 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:13.320 because I feel. 0:06:13.080 --> 0:06:15.800 Like I'm living in like the early two thousands and 0:06:15.800 --> 0:06:18.200 I'm like the files are in the computer, like two 0:06:18.200 --> 0:06:20.600 thousand and five, I think I need to I need 0:06:20.640 --> 0:06:23.440 to have some sort of cloud backup, and maybe I 0:06:23.520 --> 0:06:27.000 just need to stop being a loser and just pony 0:06:27.040 --> 0:06:29.960 up to ten bucks. Well, if listeners have a suggestion 0:06:30.120 --> 0:06:32.080 something outside of the box, I would love to hear it, 0:06:32.120 --> 0:06:34.520 because for us, we have found that it's worth it 0:06:34.560 --> 0:06:37.400 and it works. And oh man, here's just I hate 0:06:37.400 --> 0:06:39.400 all the notifications all the time. It's like you're still 0:06:39.400 --> 0:06:40.280 stone backed up your stuff. 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:42.160 I know, man, they're trying to get you. 0:06:42.240 --> 0:06:44.520 I know, I feel like I'm being like pushed into 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:46.640 this relationship. 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:48.000 Against my will. It feels like you're getting bullied. Yes, 0:06:48.040 --> 0:06:50.599 have you optimized for photo storage? It's where they it's like, 0:06:51.440 --> 0:06:53.320 have you have you looked into your photos your setting? 0:06:53.360 --> 0:06:55.440 I think I've done that recently at least. Basically, it 0:06:55.520 --> 0:06:58.440 stores on your device the like a low res version, 0:06:58.600 --> 0:07:00.520 and the high reds is living on the web on 0:07:00.839 --> 0:07:02.880 the clouds, so that way, if you recall the photo, 0:07:03.000 --> 0:07:06.039 it'll instantly download it basically and allow you to see 0:07:06.080 --> 0:07:07.760 the full reds. If you're like zooming in. 0:07:07.839 --> 0:07:10.640 Okay, for something that still requires paying for the surface stuff, 0:07:10.760 --> 0:07:13.600 well that just requires or it requires less space on 0:07:13.600 --> 0:07:14.320 your actual phone. 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:18.120 Okay, so yeah, I don't know. I wanted to say 0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:20.200 one other benefit. Man, I don't want this to sound 0:07:20.240 --> 0:07:22.680 like an ad for iCloud, but Kate and I do 0:07:22.800 --> 0:07:26.480 a shared photo library as well, which means that any 0:07:26.480 --> 0:07:29.640 photo she takes in any photo I take, were able 0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:32.040 to see each other's photos, which is awesome. And I 0:07:32.080 --> 0:07:36.160 recently discovered this when you're putting together speaking of buying 0:07:36.200 --> 0:07:40.080 products from different photo companies, I was creating a photo 0:07:40.120 --> 0:07:43.400 album for last year again, memory dividends. Like you know, 0:07:43.440 --> 0:07:45.560 I remember looking at photo albums as a kid, and 0:07:45.600 --> 0:07:47.600 the ability to look back at trips and stuff that 0:07:47.600 --> 0:07:49.720 we had going on, and seeing both of our photos 0:07:50.000 --> 0:07:52.440 together in one single stream to kind of pick the oh, oh, 0:07:52.480 --> 0:07:54.680 actually I want to go with that one instead, it's 0:07:54.800 --> 0:07:56.800 taken from a better angle, that kind of thing. I 0:07:56.840 --> 0:07:58.960 don't know. To me, that was yet another reason why 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:01.560 I was so thankful to be able to have overlapping 0:08:01.560 --> 0:08:02.480 photo storage like that. 0:08:02.560 --> 0:08:05.640 I'm just like so averse to bringing in another subscription 0:08:05.720 --> 0:08:06.200 into my life. 0:08:06.320 --> 0:08:08.440 I resisted it for a long time too, dude, But 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:11.160 I'm telling you, the water's fine. It's okay. If yeah, 0:08:11.240 --> 0:08:12.840 if you're willing to pay it up, it's really nice. 0:08:12.840 --> 0:08:14.600 And if you're a listener out there and you're like, no, no, 0:08:14.600 --> 0:08:16.840 there's a better way forward, please tell me now. Yeah, 0:08:16.920 --> 0:08:18.640 all right, let's mention the beer we're having on this episode. 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:21.560 It's called Cloak and Dagger. It's a Vienna lagger by 0:08:21.640 --> 0:08:24.480 Incendiary Brewing. We'll give our thoughts on this one later 0:08:24.520 --> 0:08:26.200 on the episode, y boy, And if you have a 0:08:26.200 --> 0:08:28.120 money question we want to hear from you, you can 0:08:28.120 --> 0:08:29.840 go to how to money dot com, slash ask, or 0:08:29.960 --> 0:08:32.559 just literally record a voice member with your money question 0:08:33.240 --> 0:08:36.040 on your phone and send it over to us how 0:08:36.080 --> 0:08:38.240 to moneypot at gmail dot com. All right, Matt, let's 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:43.320 take questions. This question is specifically about it's it's a 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:45.840 frugal or cheap conundrum in regards to healthcare costs. 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:48.840 Hey, Jela, Matt, this is Daniel from Salt Lake City. 0:08:48.920 --> 0:08:50.760 I love the podcast, so thanks for all you guys. 0:08:50.760 --> 0:08:53.880 Do I have a question about whether something I'm considering 0:08:54.000 --> 0:08:56.760 is frugal or is just cheap. So We've had a 0:08:56.800 --> 0:08:59.679 lot of medical expenses recently, and I've been trying to 0:08:59.720 --> 0:09:03.200 get to discounts wherever possible. I applied for financial assistance, 0:09:03.480 --> 0:09:06.400 even though I didn't expect to qualify, and ultimately they 0:09:06.400 --> 0:09:10.319 deny me. So when I called the billing department, they 0:09:10.440 --> 0:09:12.320 told me the best discount they could do was just 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:17.440 ten percent. Now, I've done this before with other hospitals, 0:09:17.440 --> 0:09:21.680 and I've gotten a thirty percent discount before, but they 0:09:21.720 --> 0:09:23.679 wouldn't go any lower. So I asked if there was 0:09:23.720 --> 0:09:27.360 anything else they could do, and the billing specialists they 0:09:27.400 --> 0:09:31.040 mentioned something unconventional. They said, wait until the bill goes 0:09:31.040 --> 0:09:34.520 to their internal collections. You see. He explained that they 0:09:34.600 --> 0:09:37.480 don't report to the credit bureau and that once the 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:42.840 account is in the collections, they often will discount at thirty, fifty, 0:09:42.960 --> 0:09:46.520 maybe even seventy percent. So my question is would waiting 0:09:46.600 --> 0:09:49.560 for it to go to internal collections to get a 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:53.440 steeper discount be considered frugal or is that crossing into cheap? 0:09:53.679 --> 0:09:54.720 Thanks guys for all your help. 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:58.240 Ooh a billing frugal or cheap? Joel and I wondered 0:09:58.240 --> 0:09:59.800 before we kick things off here, I want to say 0:09:59.800 --> 0:10:02.480 that ten percent discount, you know, that's just like the 0:10:02.480 --> 0:10:05.640 standard boiler plate. If anybody asks, you're allowed to give 0:10:05.640 --> 0:10:08.240 them ten percent without having to check with the manager 0:10:08.440 --> 0:10:10.439 that kind of thing. So that means it's like literally 0:10:10.480 --> 0:10:11.880 the lowest possible discount. 0:10:11.960 --> 0:10:15.760 Yeah, offer, and you know if you play if you 0:10:15.760 --> 0:10:17.400 play ball a little bit harder, you can do better. 0:10:17.440 --> 0:10:20.319 Totally. Yeah, And I think Daniel knows that. But I 0:10:20.360 --> 0:10:23.120 love that you are asking the question, Daniel, because medical 0:10:23.120 --> 0:10:25.240 debt is such a pain in the butt, as the 0:10:25.360 --> 0:10:27.760 vast majority of Americans have found out at one point 0:10:27.800 --> 0:10:29.600 or the other. But I'm glad you've gone down the 0:10:29.840 --> 0:10:33.480 financial assistance pathway and you know you ask for that discount. 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:37.559 Those are the two most likely ways to have medical debt, 0:10:37.880 --> 0:10:40.800 either forgiven or to have that bill reduced in the 0:10:40.800 --> 0:10:43.360 first place. But because it sounds like you make a 0:10:43.360 --> 0:10:46.040 pretty good income, the hospital is being a little stingy 0:10:46.080 --> 0:10:50.120 with you, which I get. But it is true that 0:10:50.200 --> 0:10:53.320 you can let this process just linger for a little 0:10:53.360 --> 0:10:57.160 bit longer in hopes of getting a fatter discount without 0:10:57.160 --> 0:11:00.640 financially harming yourself. And that's actually the key point. Yeah, 0:11:00.640 --> 0:11:01.679 that's worth driving home here. 0:11:01.679 --> 0:11:04.440 And when you say let it linger longer, that's because 0:11:04.480 --> 0:11:07.880 there's essentially a twelve a twelve month timeframe that you 0:11:07.960 --> 0:11:08.880 have to work in here. 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:10.680 Three hundred and sixty five dagy race pier. 0:11:10.800 --> 0:11:15.160 That's right where that this bill will not be reported 0:11:15.559 --> 0:11:19.880 to collections if it remains unpaid. Right at that point 0:11:19.960 --> 0:11:22.160 after that three hundred and sixty five days, that's when 0:11:22.720 --> 0:11:25.880 the unpaid debt can impact your credit, hurt your credit score, 0:11:26.120 --> 0:11:28.719 live on your credit report. So we want you to 0:11:28.760 --> 0:11:31.880 be aware of that deadline. But that means you've got 0:11:31.920 --> 0:11:33.840 like a lot of time, a lot of room to 0:11:33.960 --> 0:11:38.440 wiggle in an attempt to negotiate this debt down. And 0:11:38.559 --> 0:11:40.680 you know, we don't want your desire to get a 0:11:40.679 --> 0:11:42.880 deal and to pay less have a long term impact 0:11:42.920 --> 0:11:45.400 on your credit score, because that can cascade, it can 0:11:45.600 --> 0:11:49.160 impact other areas of your life significantly in a negative way. 0:11:49.559 --> 0:11:51.240 And so just know this. 0:11:51.320 --> 0:11:53.720 You're probably going to get some letters in the mail 0:11:53.840 --> 0:11:56.680 with big red letters on them saying like final notice 0:11:56.800 --> 0:12:00.360 or something like that. But don't freak out. Bi'll overdo right. 0:12:00.559 --> 0:12:02.800 You get all sorts of stuff. And that's what I 0:12:02.800 --> 0:12:06.360 think causes a lot of people to pay before they're ready, 0:12:06.400 --> 0:12:09.120 because it strikes fear into your heart, understandably. So when 0:12:09.160 --> 0:12:11.480 you see those letters written on a mailer, that's that 0:12:11.559 --> 0:12:15.360 you get in you know in snail mail. But this, 0:12:15.360 --> 0:12:17.480 this twelve month window essentially gives you a lot of 0:12:17.480 --> 0:12:19.160 time and a lot of leverage to wait for a 0:12:19.200 --> 0:12:22.280 better deal. Yeah, most people don't realize that that's their right. 0:12:22.320 --> 0:12:25.200 They don't know that that's how things work, and so 0:12:25.320 --> 0:12:28.880 because of that, they pay prematurely and they don't get 0:12:28.920 --> 0:12:31.720 maybe the discount or the breaking price that they deserve. 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:33.840 Yeah, it's it's like a game of chicken, right, because 0:12:33.880 --> 0:12:37.120 they're they're wanting you to flinch first, but the closer 0:12:37.160 --> 0:12:38.719 you get to the end of that, they're thinking, oh 0:12:38.720 --> 0:12:40.559 my gosh, this guy may may not actually be able 0:12:40.600 --> 0:12:43.920 to pay, so we're willing to take Lessah. And you 0:12:43.960 --> 0:12:46.280 know this is going to sound a bit sketchy where 0:12:46.320 --> 0:12:48.280 you're waiting to get a better deal. But you know, 0:12:48.400 --> 0:12:50.600 I'm going to say that the entire healthcare system is 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:52.959 a bit sketchy, and consumers have to figure out how 0:12:53.000 --> 0:12:55.120 it is they're going to navigate the system that isn't 0:12:55.160 --> 0:12:57.920 well constructed. It seems a bit unfair to a lot 0:12:57.960 --> 0:13:01.280 of folks. And in this case, we're gonna side with 0:13:01.520 --> 0:13:04.360 the patients. We're gonna side with you, Daniel, not for 0:13:04.400 --> 0:13:06.720 the hospitals out there and in large part this is 0:13:06.840 --> 0:13:09.920 another reason why it's not sketchy. Is this grace period 0:13:09.960 --> 0:13:14.080 exists because oftentimes because most people have insurance, and so 0:13:14.160 --> 0:13:16.360 if you get a claim that's denied, well, it gives 0:13:16.360 --> 0:13:18.680 you time to fight that claim because the hospital wants 0:13:18.720 --> 0:13:20.840 you do have time, like they're doing this for you 0:13:21.040 --> 0:13:23.360 so that you can get your insurance company to pay them. 0:13:23.400 --> 0:13:27.000 They're like, help me, help you. So that's one of 0:13:27.040 --> 0:13:30.360 the reasons. But also there can be medical billing errors, 0:13:30.400 --> 0:13:32.600 and so that gives you time to spend some time 0:13:32.640 --> 0:13:36.360 looking over the bill, making sure that things are coded correctly. 0:13:36.360 --> 0:13:38.680 That's the word, right, Yeah, and to make sure wait 0:13:38.679 --> 0:13:41.360 a second, you charge me how much for that aspirin? 0:13:41.760 --> 0:13:43.720 Or wait you charged me for this thing that that 0:13:43.840 --> 0:13:46.200 seems that I didn't actually get that service at ridict yeh, yeah, you. 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:47.640 Can put fact on that. So it's not just the 0:13:47.679 --> 0:13:50.480 insurance company making errors, but it oftentimes can be the 0:13:50.520 --> 0:13:54.080 actual hospital making errors from time to time. And I 0:13:54.120 --> 0:13:55.760 want to go back to what you said too. I 0:13:55.800 --> 0:13:58.400 think how the money listeners in particular are at a 0:13:58.440 --> 0:14:00.920 distinct disadvantage here because I think if you are listening 0:14:00.920 --> 0:14:03.040 to the show, you are somebody who's a bit more organized. 0:14:03.800 --> 0:14:07.200 You certainly have got financial goals, like in your sights, right, 0:14:07.240 --> 0:14:08.720 and so you see this thing show up and all 0:14:08.760 --> 0:14:11.800 of a sudden it looks like a financial threat, and 0:14:11.840 --> 0:14:13.120 you just want to pounce on it. You want to 0:14:13.160 --> 0:14:15.880 kept like immediately eliminate it. But what that means is 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:17.560 you're actually paying more than you need to. Yeah. 0:14:17.640 --> 0:14:20.320 Yeah, if you eradicate it too quickly, it means you've 0:14:20.600 --> 0:14:23.640 like you didn't use your leverage and you didn't use 0:14:23.680 --> 0:14:27.760 the possibility, like the tactics that are available to you 0:14:27.960 --> 0:14:30.480 to try and reduce that bill instead of just like 0:14:30.720 --> 0:14:32.600 paying the full price and getting it over with. I 0:14:32.640 --> 0:14:35.360 get that impulse, yeah, but ultimately that is going to 0:14:35.440 --> 0:14:36.720 cost you more than you need to pay. 0:14:36.800 --> 0:14:39.280 Totally. I just think it's ironic that somebody who's maybe 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:42.720 more disorganized out there yellow and yeah, is gonna be 0:14:42.800 --> 0:14:45.240 the one who's paying, like actually will be able to 0:14:45.240 --> 0:14:47.840 pay less because oh I hadn't seen that bill or 0:14:48.040 --> 0:14:49.840 I didn't even open that envelope. There's like three of 0:14:49.840 --> 0:14:51.800 them on the desk. I hadn't you know. Oh that 0:14:51.880 --> 0:14:53.920 was six months ago, and all of a sudden they've 0:14:53.920 --> 0:14:56.880 cut the bill by like thirty percent and talking about internally, 0:14:56.960 --> 0:14:57.760 oh maybe forty percent. 0:14:57.960 --> 0:15:00.480 Right data, it's like best of both worlds for right 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:03.120 because he is organized and he's ready, he's prepared, and 0:15:03.200 --> 0:15:05.360 he's looking for a discount. So it's not he's not 0:15:05.440 --> 0:15:08.160 just yellowing it. He's he's going to this eyes wide 0:15:08.200 --> 0:15:10.640 open and an attempt to save money. I also thought 0:15:10.680 --> 0:15:12.320 it was really interesting the person on the phone, and 0:15:12.360 --> 0:15:15.800 you will occasionally find this right where they toss out 0:15:15.840 --> 0:15:18.640 a piece of advice and it's kind of like you're 0:15:18.680 --> 0:15:22.720 played blackjack matter at casino and never oh, it's really fun. 0:15:22.760 --> 0:15:23.720 I know how to play. 0:15:23.760 --> 0:15:26.040 It's been a long time. Yeah, but we'll find some 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:28.160 people are some of the dealers are a little more 0:15:28.160 --> 0:15:31.440 tight lipped than others. And when you're playing with people 0:15:31.440 --> 0:15:34.520 who don't know how to play blackjack, you are thankful 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:39.080 when the dealer is a little more open about strategy 0:15:39.320 --> 0:15:41.640 because they're often they teach you a little bit, they 0:15:41.640 --> 0:15:44.280 help the person make a better move and that helps 0:15:44.320 --> 0:15:46.200 everyone at the table. And and so this is one 0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:49.080 of those things where the person in customer service is 0:15:49.120 --> 0:15:51.480 not being tight lipped, there being a little hey in 0:15:51.520 --> 0:15:53.160 actually in our system, this is how it works and 0:15:53.160 --> 0:15:55.920 if you wait a little bit longer, they're basically telegraphing 0:15:56.000 --> 0:15:56.680 this to you. 0:15:56.760 --> 0:15:58.720 They're like advocating on your behalf right. 0:15:58.720 --> 0:16:00.880 Saying, well, I can't help you right now, but if 0:16:00.920 --> 0:16:04.240 you take this strategy, you can probably save in the 0:16:04.280 --> 0:16:06.280 long run. And so I think I would do what 0:16:06.440 --> 0:16:08.440 Daniel is suggesting. I would wait for it to go 0:16:08.440 --> 0:16:11.160 into collections in an attempt to work out a one 0:16:11.200 --> 0:16:14.080 time cash payment for a lower percentage. 0:16:13.560 --> 0:16:14.160 Of the balance. 0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:18.000 And Matt, you talked about ten percent being a crummy discount. 0:16:18.120 --> 0:16:20.680 What do you think maybe a good discount to shoot 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:21.280 for would be. 0:16:21.360 --> 0:16:23.680 Oh, I mean, I think it varies. So here's the thing, 0:16:23.880 --> 0:16:26.400 full disclosure. I've not done this personally, but I kind 0:16:26.440 --> 0:16:29.680 of am excited for the next medical again, just to 0:16:29.680 --> 0:16:32.160 be like, don't think I'm going to pay it for 0:16:32.200 --> 0:16:34.240 a little bit and see what happens. Like I think 0:16:34.320 --> 0:16:37.440 thirty percent seems like a slam dunk. Like I'm sorry 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:39.960 that that is most definitely going to be offered to you. 0:16:40.280 --> 0:16:42.080 Whether or not you get a forty percent or fifty 0:16:42.120 --> 0:16:44.160 percent or even higher, I think I don't know, but 0:16:44.720 --> 0:16:46.360 I do think the closer you get to the end 0:16:46.360 --> 0:16:49.760 of that runway they you know, collections, they start feeling 0:16:49.800 --> 0:16:51.960 a little bit nervous because beyond that, they're selling it 0:16:52.000 --> 0:16:56.120 for pennies on the dollar to an external collections agency, right, 0:16:56.160 --> 0:16:58.280 and at that point they're going to receive even less 0:16:58.400 --> 0:17:00.280 from a potential. 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:02.400 Yeah, I think I'll kind of treat this as a 0:17:02.400 --> 0:17:04.960 game a little bit, And Daniel's already kind of taking 0:17:05.000 --> 0:17:07.520 that gamification approach, But I think you're right. I think 0:17:07.520 --> 0:17:10.680 shooting for that fifty plus percent discount and then settling 0:17:10.720 --> 0:17:13.360 for a thirty percent discount, right, if if that's all 0:17:13.400 --> 0:17:16.520 that's offered to you after a significant time period of 0:17:16.560 --> 0:17:18.080 trying to work this out, it's going to be a 0:17:18.080 --> 0:17:19.480 little bit of a part time job. It's going to 0:17:19.760 --> 0:17:21.120 be a little bit like playing a whack a mole. 0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:25.440 But ultimately, I think if you are intent on saving 0:17:25.480 --> 0:17:27.640 money on this bill and you kind of let things 0:17:27.720 --> 0:17:30.919 run their course while being active in the process, you 0:17:30.960 --> 0:17:33.080 can probably save a lot of money off this medical bill. 0:17:33.440 --> 0:17:35.240 And I don't know, maybe at some point we should 0:17:35.240 --> 0:17:38.359 probably publish like a how to guide like how to 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:41.560 and you know what, Actually it's on my radar map 0:17:41.600 --> 0:17:43.520 to do a full episode on this soon. 0:17:44.080 --> 0:17:47.280 So let's make that happen. Also sounds good. Actually, we're 0:17:47.280 --> 0:17:49.719 going to talk more about healthcare stuff hsas, but not 0:17:50.440 --> 0:17:53.359 from a medical standpoint, from an investing standpoint. We'll get 0:17:53.400 --> 0:18:03.400 to that and more right after this. All right, we'll back. 0:18:03.440 --> 0:18:05.720 We got more of your money questions to get to. 0:18:06.320 --> 0:18:10.240