u/diondavenport

I'm reading the book Yesteryear (not done yet, no spoilers please!) and I think it's broken something inside of my brain. I'm crying at parts I don't think I'm actually supposed to be crying at, sympathizing with characters I'm not sure I'm supposed to sympathizing with, and truly wondering what the overarching message is supposed to be (again, I'm not done reading yet).

I was raised by a stay-at-home mom who married "well" but she had zero control over the finances, had a checked-out/hands off husband, and was very miserable. I chose the complete opposite path. Law school, to a law firm, to a "cushy" (but lower paying) in house job. I married an entrepreneur who works hard but is frequently unable to take on a fair share of the domestic obligations, and if I'm being completely honest does not make as much money as Id like.

I don't know that I'm any happier than she is. I don't think I have access to more money than she did. And I feel like I'm doing way more than she ever did having to manage my household AND job.

I question the path that I would encourage my daughter to take...maybe ultimately any path in life you take has its pros/cons...and it's just a "choose your hard" type of thing.

A recruiter contacted me about a "special counsel" role at a law firm due to my specific background/prior work with a specific client. I'm currently in house but interested...

I would like to understand what is the long term plan for lawyers in these type of roles. I was told this role would not be on the partner track but I would be eligible for yearly bonuses.

If I ever wanted to leave would I have to find a similar role at another firm? Would I be too specialized to become a partner at another firm or return in house? Is there any room for salary growth in these type of positions, or is the bonus the only way to increase your income?

I have a reference based pricing insurance plan though my employer and an outstanding hospital bill related to the birth of my child in 2024 that I'm trying to figure out how to resolve.

My plan stats that childbirth/delivery professional and facility services are covered with "no charge after deductible." My individual deductible is $3,000.

My plan states that my out of pocket limit is $3,000 for network and $6,000 for non network. It says the out of pocket limit is the "most you could pay in a year for covered services."

At the time that I gave birth I hit my out of pocket limit and my deductible. It was my understanding that when I gave birth at my in network hospital, I would owe nothing.

When I received my hospital bills for the birth, it showed that the hospital billed about $20,000, insurance company paid about $12,000 and I was left with a balance of about $8,000.

I was initially trying to resolve this situation myself. But I was getting the run around from both the hospital and the insurance company. The insurance company told me the hospital did not bill me correctly per the terms of my plan and the hospital needs to change the bill to reflect the fact that I owe nothing. The insurance company told me many times not to pay the bill. The hospital told me the insurance company needs to pay the remaining $8,000. I told the hospital that I was instructed not to pay the bill.

I was eventually referred by my insurance to their "patient advocacy network" who was assigned with "negotiating the bills." Again, I was told many times not to pay the bill and that they would resolve the situation with the hospital. They check in with me every now and then to tell me that they are still negotiating.

I recently logged into my chart and the bill states its with collections. I have not received any collections letters and there were no collections on my credit file.

Who's responsibility is it to "fix" the bill? Who's responsibility is it to pay the outstanding balance?

I started looking into the referenced based pricing model, and its my understanding that insurance company pays what they want and the hospital will accept that and bill the patient for the rest. How does my deductible and limit play into that?

ETA: I'm planning on raising this whole situation with HR at my company...especially because I've heard rumours that other employees are having similar issues, with bills not being paid. And in one specific case, a hospital filed a lawsuit against an employee and my employer. I want to make sure I have a full understanding of who is even responsible for what before I talk to HR.

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