Making sure your insurance company pays for rehab
In the U.S., most states require that group health plans cover rehab and other forms of addiction treatment. But as many people have found out the hard way, insurance companies don’t always make it easy for their customers to receive payment or reimbursement for their alcohol or drug rehab care.
Here are some tips for “fighting back” against insurance companies that are trying to deny you the benefits you are entitled to under law:
- Get help from your employer. Look through your employee handbook to see if there is specific mention of reimbursement for addiction treatment. If the answer is “yes”, your employer can override the insurance company’s denial of coverage.
- Get assistance from the state’s insurance office. Every state has an insurance department whose job it is to make sure insurers are following all the rules.
- Get your elected officials involved. If you are unable to make any progress on your own, ask your local government representative to step in and help enforce the laws of the state regarding insurance coverage for its residents.
- Keep good records. Make sure that there is always a proper “paper trail” of all your interactions with the insurance company, the rehab center and any government offices you contact.
- Don’t wait! Most importantly, you should never hold off on starting your rehab program until these insurance-related issues are resolved. Your life and well-being are just too important.
Also check with your local government office to confirm that your state forces insurance companies to pay for addiction treatment. As of this writing, the states which currently DO NOT pay for alcohol and drug rehab are: Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Oklahoma and Wyoming.
Visit Michael’s House for more information about alcohol and drug rehab programs that treat the mind, body and spirit of the individual.
Tags: addiction treatment, drug rehab, insurance