‘Nothing we can do about it’: Woman’s insurance expects her to cough up $900 out of the blue but she gets out of paying with controversial yet effective trick

It’s safe to say insurance companies aren’t exactly popular. While they may be necessary it often feels like policies can be rather predatory, making things harder for everyday people who are just trying to get by. One woman shared her frustrating experience on TikTok after she was slapped with an unexpected $900 fee for her medication.

TikTok user @dr.mrs.knits (AKA Alet) explains that her insurance denied her prescription which she had been taking for 10 years. According to her they were now expecting her to pay $900 for the medication which her insurance had previously covered. In case you were wondering, no, the prescription hadn’t changed, neither had the policy or the provider. The worst part is that she wasn’t even notified of the change in price.

Insurance companies have been messing people around for years but this seems particularly egregious. There seemed to be no reasonable explanation as to why Alet’s medication would suddenly cost $900, yet the people she spoke to over the phone told her there was “nothing we can do about it.” It was at this point that she snapped and went with the nuclear option, telling the person on the other end of the line something which surprisingly worked in her favor.

Turns out insurance companies actually do care

Alet reveals that she was able to get the $900 charge removed after threatening to take her own life while on the phone. Just to make things clear, this is definitely not the recommended way to negotiate with insurance companies. As Alet puts it “it’s not plan A, It’s not plan B, It’s not plan C even. But it does work.”

In the comments people shared their own stories of how they got one over on their insurance providers, one person claimed their insurance provider was charging $800 for medication so they called the manufacturer and got it for $5. Another shared how their dad was denied diabetic supplies so he would “call 911 and make them come and check his sugar.” Others have used similar tactics to Alet and had success.

Would this actually work?

Of course, it may work in some cases, but it’s not without its risks. One person pointed out that it depends on the state and even the insurance provider. While some may cave, others might have you put on psych hold. 

However, many seem to agree that the insurance company could potentially be found liable for a person’s death if it is directly related to not receiving adequate care/medication. In this case, if the phone call is recorded and the person threatens to commit then the company may not want to take the risk as they could be held responsible.

Insurance companies have sort of become public enemy #1. I’m sure I don’t have to remind you of what happened last year with Luigi Mangione and the public support he received for his alleged actions against United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. 

Despite things getting more expensive it seems these companies are content to keep squeezing people for more money. It’s hard to blame people like Alet for doing what they can to maintain access to their medication. Especially when it seems these insurers are simply acting out of greed.