Understand Your Bill

Medical bills can sometimes be hard to understand, especially if you received care from multiple doctors and locations. We want to make your billing experience as stress-free as possible. Below you will find information and resources to help you have a better understanding of your bill, including a billing statement walkthrough.

Types of bills

After you receive care at a MultiCare hospital or clinic, you may receive more than one bill, including:

• Your MultiCare bill. This will include any hospital stays, clinic visits and other MultiCare outpatient services, such as X-rays, lab tests and therapies. This bill will have MultiCare’s name on it and will include charges for doctors and other providers employed by MultiCare who assisted in your care. Typically, we will submit a payment claim to your insurance company before we send you a bill.
• Bills from other providers. Not all health care professionals who treat patients at our hospitals are employed by MultiCare, such as many anesthesiologists, radiologists, surgeons and emergency department doctors. Your MultiCare bill does not include charges for services provided by doctors who do not work for us.
• Hospital-based clinics. A number of our clinics and other facilities where you receive care are considered hospital-based clinics. You may incur additional out-of-pocket expenses at these clinics because a clinical service may be billed as an outpatient hospital service. Hospital-based clinics display a poster letting you know the facility is hospital-based. If you would like to know if the clinic is hospital-based before your visit, please call the clinic.

Statement walkthrough

Understanding your billing statement can help relieve stress from the billing process. In the sample bill below, you’ll find an explanation of what each section of the bill means. You can also download a PDF of the billing statement walkthrough.

If at any time you have questions about your bill, we are here to help. Please call our customer service team at 800-919-1936.

Step-by-step explanation

1. Account information: Please use your account number when making payments or speaking with customer service.
2. Account summary: Summary of charges, payments and total amount due.
3. Notifications: Important notification messages, account status, reminders and special offers.
4. Payment options: Easy ways to make your payments by phone, mail or online via MyChart.
5. Contact us: Please use this information to contact us with any questions.
6. Payment coupon: If paying by mail, detach this payment coupon and place in the return envelope provided.
7. Hospital services: Charges, payments, adjustments, balance and a description of the care you received will be listed under this heading.
8. Visit number: If you have questions about a particular service or charge, please have the visit number available so we can quickly help locate the service in question.
9. Balance due for hospital services: Provides the amount due.
10. Professional services: Charges, payments, adjustments, balance and description of the care received will be listed under this heading.
11. Balance due for professional services: Provides the amount due.
12. Total balance due: Provides the combined total of Hospital Services and Professional Services. This is the amount you owe.