Timely filing

What does Timely filing mean on a medical bill?

Timely filing is the deadline a provider has to send a claim to your plan, set by their contract with that plan rather than by you. Miss it and the plan denies the claim on those grounds alone, no matter how legitimate the care was. Deadlines differ between plans and contracts, so the useful move is to ask rather than assume. When an in-network provider misses it, their contract with the plan is what governs who absorbs the charge — put that question to the billing office in writing.

What should I watch out for with Timely filing?

• A denial saying the claim was filed late — ask the provider when they first submitted it
• Ask the billing office to show the submission date and the plan's deadline for that contract
• A first bill arriving long after the visit — ask why the claim took that long to go out