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Patient Billing

You may receive separate bills for services received at the University of Michigan, one for professional fees and one for hospital fees.

Each billing area has a customer service team to help you with questions or concerns you have about insurance billing or the amount you owe.

For Professional Fee Customer Service - Includes services provided by physicians, psychologists, nurse practitioners, social workers and physician assistants.

For Hospital Customer Service - Includes supplies, laboratory tests, physical therapy, treatment rooms, and drugs

Insurance Plan Participation

If we have a contract with your insurance plan, your out-of-pocket costs are limited to co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles and non-covered services. Insurance contracts change periodically, and we recommend that you speak with your insurance plan to see if they include us in their network.

If your insurance plan does not have a contract with us, we will bill them as a courtesy to you, but any amounts unpaid by your plan will be your responsibility. If we are not a participating provider, you may want to ask your insurance plan if they have participating providers in your area in order to minimize your out-of-pocket costs.

We also participate with Medicare, Medicaid, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Michigan, TRICARE, Michigan No-Fault, and Michigan Workers Compensation. For these plans your out-of-pocket costs may be limited to co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles and non-covered services.

Visit the U-M Health System's Insurance and Patient Billing: Participating Insurance Plans web page for a current list.

Referrals and Authorizations

Many insurance plans require referrals and/or authorizations in order for services to be covered. A referral is permission from your primary care physician and your health plan to see a particular provider or to have specific procedures done. If your plan requires a referral, your primary care physician must provide the referral prior to services being rendered. If you arrive for services without a referral in place, you may be asked to sign a waiver that holds you financially responsible for the services you receive.

Authorizations are often required for procedures such as surgery or MRI. If an authorization is required, UMHS clinic staff will obtain the authorization from your health plan prior to the service. If you have questions about whether a service will be authorized, please call your health plan.

Visit the H-M Health System's Insurance and Patient Billing: Referrals and Authorizations web page for more information.

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updated 4/08

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