Pediatrician Refuses To Treat 2-Year-Old Until His Mom's Payment Plan Is Paid In Full
What's the point of paying for insurance anymore?
Ground Picture | Shutterstock America's healthcare system has been in the crosshairs for quite some time, but the current economic climate, combined with morally grey views on Luigi Mangione and the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has inspired many Americans to be more vocal about their discontent.
One mom took to Reddit to do just that, in fact. She alleged that her pediatrician's office refused to remove her 2-year-old son's stitches unless she paid her outstanding bill in full. Yes, she has insurance. Yes, she's on a payment plan. Her anger is justified.
A mom said her toddler's pediatrician won't treat him unless she pays off her payment plan in full.
This mom is at her wit's end, and rightfully so. She wrote, "I received a letter from child's pediatricians office stating that we owe just over $400 and that they will no longer be treating my children until it is paid. Mind you, we have insurance. That we pay a lot for monthly just to HAVE. But it isn't good insurance and has a very high annual deductible that we never meet. So everything costs a ton."
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Sadly, two weeks before receiving the letter, her 2-year-old cut himself and needed stitches. The ER visit cost them $630, but it didn't include a follow-up to remove said stitches. "He now needs his stitches removed, so I called his pediatricians office and asked if I could setup a payment plan as we have a few medical bills that we need to pay right now." The mom went on to say, "I was told that yes, I can setup a payment plan but I cannot make an appointment for my children until the plan is paid in full."
Trying to rationalize with the doctor's office the mom said, "my 2 year old needs his stitches removed and they said they cannot schedule him with the unpaid balance and that I would need to take him back to the ER to have the stitches removed. So, likely another $500 or so." Basically, they said the best we can do is make your situation worse ... have a nice day!
More than half of Americans are one medical emergency away from poverty.
The healthcare system is unforgiving, even when people are doing their best. It's as simple as that. Most people think that having insurance will protect them, but that's just not the case. According to Bankrate's 2025 Emergency Savings Report, a staggering 59% of Americans don't have enough money in savings to cover a $1000 emergency room bill.
When healthcare access depends not just on insurance but on your current cash flow, even responsible families get pushed to their breaking point. The solution for this mom is to simply rack up more medical debt. How does that help? “It’s not a matter of if, but when an unexpected expense will pop up,” said Jill Cornfield, a retirement analyst on Bankrate.com. "We are essentially a paycheck-to-paycheck nation," Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst Mark Hamrick said in a statement. "Fewer Americans have the equivalent of a financial safety net to cover inevitable unexpected expenses, despite low unemployment and steady growth. This is one of the consequences of elevated prices stemming from inflation, the impacts of which are still being felt."
Over 90% of Americans have health insurance, so why is medical debt such a pervasive problem? According to a KFF analysis of medical data, "Most of the 20 million adults with medical debt owe over $1,000, and about half (11 million people) owe over $2,000. Among the 20 million adults with medical debt, about 3 million (13%) have debt obligations between $5,001 and $10,000, and another 3 million (14%) owe more than $10,000."
Just because pretty much everyone in the US is struggling with medical expenses doesn't make this mom's situation any less frustrating.
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Blocking a toddler’s follow-up care over a few hundred dollars might feel outrageous, but in the U.S., it's par for the course. Medical debt is a leading cause of bankruptcy, yet we're all PAYING for health insurance, so that doesn't happen. It simply doesn't make sense.
To add insult to injury, this mom added, "Just in case anyone ever wanted to defend the US healthcare system. This is why it isn't working. We also owe a behavioral health doctor over $2,000 for two visits they had with my older son. He also takes medication that costs us $380 a month." She concluded, On top of this, we pay $410 per month just to have this horrible insurance that doesn't cover anything. This is through my employer. And before anyone in the US asks, no, we do not qualify for assistance or medicaid of any kind. We make too much money. And yet not enough money to not be struggling to pay all of our medical costs. I hate it here."
The comment section on Reddit was a mix of empathy and, believe it or not, advice on how to remove stitches at home as a solution to avoiding more debt. One commenter simply stated, "Let me just say it’s pretty freaking sad that 'just perform this medical procedure on yourself' is the default reaction most people are having to OP’s problem."
Erika Ryan is a writer working on her bachelor's degree in Journalism. She is based in Florida and covers relationships, psychology, self-help, and human interest topics.
