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A review by jcstokes95
Never Pay the First Bill: And Other Ways to Fight the Health Care System and Win by Marshall Allen
challenging
hopeful
informative
slow-paced
3.5
I picked this book up because the title is something my mother said to me, entirely verbatim, when I called her panicking over a 900 dollar doctor’s bill. 900 dollars is nearly a whole paycheck for me, and I was freaking out. Her advice was essentially, once you give them your money, you have very little recourse for the mistakes they made. What happened with that bill was identical to the first story Allen tells in this book; despite my notifying them of a change in insurance, they hadn’t billed my insurer and passed the cost on to me. A horrifyingly common error, that many people might not even question.
Marshall Allen tells stories that will be undoubtedly familiar to any person reading this book. The insurance industry or a medical provider has probably screwed you over and you probably felt powerless because of it. Allen challenges us to see these organizations for the bullies they are and gives a practical guide to how to fight back. This book will be particularly valuable for young people who are overwhelmed by making and paying for their medical decisions. Or for people needing the references to specific conundrums. I could see myself pulling this book from the library again when in crisis. It's exceedingly practical to have on hand.
My only notes are that it can be fairly dry…but it is a book about insurance policy. It’s spiced up by the personal stories throughout, that will definitely get you riled enough to fight back. There are a few places where it can be repetitive, which is why I could see it being used as a reference easily. One thing to appreciate here, is that Allen has a whole section dedicated to employers. I wish I could make every HR department read that section. On this issue, great progress could be made if employees and employers realized they’re on the same team, you know, the team that’s getting fleeced by billionaires perpetuating fraud.
Marshall Allen tells stories that will be undoubtedly familiar to any person reading this book. The insurance industry or a medical provider has probably screwed you over and you probably felt powerless because of it. Allen challenges us to see these organizations for the bullies they are and gives a practical guide to how to fight back. This book will be particularly valuable for young people who are overwhelmed by making and paying for their medical decisions. Or for people needing the references to specific conundrums. I could see myself pulling this book from the library again when in crisis. It's exceedingly practical to have on hand.
My only notes are that it can be fairly dry…but it is a book about insurance policy. It’s spiced up by the personal stories throughout, that will definitely get you riled enough to fight back. There are a few places where it can be repetitive, which is why I could see it being used as a reference easily. One thing to appreciate here, is that Allen has a whole section dedicated to employers. I wish I could make every HR department read that section. On this issue, great progress could be made if employees and employers realized they’re on the same team, you know, the team that’s getting fleeced by billionaires perpetuating fraud.