It’s often possible to negotiate medical bills. It sounds hard — and it can be — but what if we got it down to a science? Mapped out all the moves ahead of time? Jared Walker and his team at the nonprofit Dollar For are running a big experiment to see if they can do just that. And we got to visit the lab. 


The folks at Dollar For caught our attention — and lots of other people’s—when they went super-viral on TikTok with a 60-second recipe for crushing medical debt by accessing charity care, financial assistance that most US hospitals are legally required to offer. That was early 2021. 


Next, a group of whip-smart volunteers helped Dollar For develop a user-friendly system to help folks apply for that assistance. Dollar For also started holding open trainings on Zoom, teaching people the ins and outs of applying for charity care—and helping others to do so. They say their work to date has helped erase more than $18 million in medical debt. 


But lots of people who can’t afford their medical bills don’t qualify for charity care. So Dollar For is trying something new: what they’re calling a “negotiation lab” for gaming out the best way to negotiate with hospitals and debt collectors. 


We listen-in on one of Dollar For’s real-life negotiations with a debt collector and take notes. 



Here’s a transcript of the episode.
Send your stories and questions: https://armandalegshow.com/contact/ or call 724 ARM-N-LEG
And of course we’d love for you to support this show.

It’s often possible to negotiate medical bills. It sounds hard — and it can be — but what if we got it down to a science? Mapped out all the moves ahead of time? Jared Walker and his team at the nonprofit <a href="https://dollarfor.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dollar For</a> are running a big experiment to see if they can do just that. And we got to visit the lab.&nbsp; The folks at Dollar For caught our attention — and lots of other people’s—when they went super-viral on TikTok with <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@dollarfor/video/6918181003106340102?is_from_webapp=1&amp;sender_device=pc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a 60-second recipe for crushing medical debt</a> by accessing charity care, financial assistance that most US hospitals are legally required to offer. That was early 2021.&nbsp; Next, a group of whip-smart <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/episode/badass-volunteers-help-jared-crush-medical-debt/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">volunteers helped Dollar For develop a user-friendly system</a> to help folks apply for that assistance. Dollar For also started holding open trainings on Zoom, teaching people <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/episode/using-charity-care-to-crush-medical-bills-six-top-tips/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the ins and outs of applying for charity care—and helping others to do so</a>. They say their work to date has helped erase more than $18 million in medical debt.&nbsp; But lots of people who can’t afford their medical bills don’t qualify for charity care. So Dollar For is trying something new: what they’re calling a “negotiation lab” for gaming out the best way to negotiate with hospitals and debt collectors.&nbsp; We listen-in on one of Dollar For’s real-life negotiations with a debt collector and take notes.&nbsp; <ul><li>Here’s a transcript of the episode.</li><li>Send your stories and questions: <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/contact/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://armandalegshow.com/contact/</a> or call 724 ARM-N-LEG</li><li>And of course we’d love for you to <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/match/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">support this show</a>.</li></ul>

An Arm and a Leg is a podcast about why health care costs so freaking much and what we can (maybe) do about it.

If you’ve ever been surprised by a medical bill, you’re in good company. But as our team of seasoned journalists has learned from years of reporting — you’re not always helpless. We don’t have all the answers, but we’ll offer you tools and big picture insights with plenty of humor and heart. 

An Arm and a Leg is co-produced with KFF Health News and distributed in partnership with KUOW.

You can support An Arm and a Leg by donating at armandalegshow.com/support/

Show Credits: Created, hosted, and produced by Dan Weissmann with senior producer Emily Pisacreta and engagement producer Claire Davenport, edited by Ellen Weiss. Audio wizard: Adam Raymonda. Music is by Dave Weiner and Blue Dot Sessions. Bea Bosco is our consulting director of operations. Lynne Johnson is our operations manager.

An Arm and a Leg&nbsp;is a podcast about why health care costs so freaking much and what we can (maybe) do about it.
If you&rsquo;ve ever been surprised by a medical bill, you&rsquo;re in good company. But as our team of seasoned journalists has learned from years of reporting &mdash; you&rsquo;re not always helpless. We don&rsquo;t have all the answers, but we&rsquo;ll offer you tools and big picture insights with plenty of humor and heart.&nbsp;
An Arm and a Leg is co-produced with <a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/">KFF Health News</a> and distributed in partnership with <a href="https://www.kuow.org/">KUOW</a>.
You can support An Arm and a Leg&nbsp;by donating at <a href="https://armandalegshow.com/support/">armandalegshow.com/support/</a>
<hr>
Show Credits:&nbsp;Created, hosted, and produced by Dan Weissmann with senior producer Emily Pisacreta and engagement producer Claire Davenport, edited by Ellen Weiss. Audio wizard: Adam Raymonda. Music is by Dave Weiner and Blue Dot Sessions. Bea Bosco is our consulting director of operations. Lynne Johnson is our operations manager.

An Arm and a Leg

Negotiating medical bills can work… but it can be uncertain, scary. What if there were a science to it?

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