Golden Rule

All I know is they paid for nothing. I have bills here that cannot be paid. They took over $400.00 out of my husband's checking for two years. I want all my payments back or I will get a lawyer. I needed surgery and had to cancel it. It's not fair. Someone has to stop this company. I can't afford these bills and still with my pain because Golden Rule is a scam.

I just received a letter from Golden Rule, a United Healthcare Company, increasing my annual healthcare premium by 25%. This is on top of a 15% increase 10 months ago. I can't afford to be alive.

I found Golden Rule through www.ehealthinsurance.com. Four or five months into coverage, I went to the doctor for hemorrhoids. I'd never had them before, so I panicked when I had symptoms. The insurance did not cover it because hemorrhoids, hernias, tonsils, and anything dealing with the reproductive system has a six month waiting period before they are covered. Granted, my situation wasn't terribly emergent, but aside from pregnancy, you can't control any of those conditions. Are you supposed to wait five months if you come down with tonsillitis or end up with a hernia or ovarian cysts? What good is medical coverage if they don't cover anything?

I paid over $100/month for coverage. I told them about a condition I had, which is what made my premium increase. I paid it, but they didn't cover my medication for the condition! They didn't cover the $50 after the $35 copay for my office visit because the diagnosis was one of the five or six "six month waiting period" conditions. Ridiculous. They say that this fine print is in all their policies, but I just don't understand why those ailments have a waiting period. You can't wait to get tonsillitis, a hernia, hemorrhoids, or some reproductive issue other than pregnancy. I'm appalled. I just wanted to complain about it to a site where someone may see this and avoid ehealthinsurance.com and Golden Rule.

I was laid off in April 2009 due to the economic status of this country. I have carried Cobra insurance since that time to provide health care coverage for my family. My Cobra terminates October 22nd 2010. I applied for health care coverage for myself and my two children (ages 18 and14) and given an effective date of October 22nd 2010. I was notified this evening (8 days before Cobra ends) via email that I am being turned down due to the fact that I am a disabled American Veteran! Since I am the only person on the application over the age of 19, they have also denied coverage for my daughters. Not to mention that they have already taken $580 payment for the first month's coverage.

I signed up for Insurance through Golden Rule in June of 2010 and I had problems right from the start. The first lady I talked to who set up my account told me it was going to be one price and when the first bill came it was $20 more than what I was told. So I called and talked to another lady in the billing department and she set me up with a different plan that was more suited for my budget. During that conversation I asked if I could go to get a basic check up and she said yeah. So on August 12, 2010 I went and had a physical exam and then today, two months later, I get a bill from the doctors office for $210.

So I call Golden Rule to see why they didn't pay and they told me that doctor visits aren't covered for the first 6 months but yet another lady told me it would be ok to go. So I canceled my insurance with them. With all the money I paid them, I could have paid for 3 doctor visits. They are nothing but a scam and a bunch of con artists. Even when you call they say that certain things are not covered in the first 6 months but they don't mention doctor visits at all.

Now I am out of $421.52 and they didn't do anything for me. Plus I have to pay this bill of $210 or it's going to go into collections. What a complete waste of time and money for nothing. I asked them why would I sign up and pay for insurance that's not going to cover me and they said I should have paid more attention to the booklet that they sent me, which by the way is one of the most confusing things I've ever seen.

I applied online for Golden Rule Insurance under the United HealthCare umbrella. Within 2 days, I noticed that the initial premium was already taken out of my bank account. That's fine except that I didn't know one way or the other if I had been approved or denied. It was over a long holiday weekend so I couldn't call to see what the deal was. The following Tuesday, I received a letter stating that they received my initial premium but that in between the time I applied (a Thursday) and the next Tuesday the premium rate had increased over $177.00!

I called the company to see if I was even covered. In that conversation, she told me that I was denied but that I could appeal that decision if I so desired. I told her that since I had applied thinking I would be charged one rate and got another much higher rate within a matter of a few days, so no thanks and I wanted my initial payment refunded. She said no problem.

In the mean time, I went online to this consumer complaint site and saw that others had similar problems. Then the following day, I received a letter with my denial notice. Ten days later, I received my refund check. I am grateful for that, but not with their procedures and instant rate variations. I have no idea as to their service and I'm glad to be not involved!

I have a current policy with Golden Rule. It is an HSA, which means I pay the first $5000 in costs, and then the policy picks up the difference. I have had this policy since 2006. After $18,000 in premiums, Golden Rule has never been required to pay a claim, as my family is very healthy. Each year I receive an increase in premiums based on the fact that costs continue to rise in the healthcare industry. This year, the premium went up again. I went online and applied for a new Golden Rule policy with improved coverage, a higher deductible and a premium that was $230 less per month.

After debiting my account for the premium, my policy was withdrawn by Golden Rule, as I am an existing customer. I asked to increase the deductible on my current plan to lower the premium, and that option is not currently available. This insurance company is increasing my premiums, and offering no solutions to lower such premiums, while advertising much lower premiums to new customers. They want to charge me $2760 more per year, with a four year track record of not needing to pay a single claim. I am very angry.

I applied for insurance with Golden Rule in June. After getting a quote, I agreed to the said amount. They took the money the same day out of my checking account. After they contacted me and increased the amount twice in one month, I canceled the policy. (June 28, 2010) The policy was supposed to go in affect July 1st 2010. I was sent a letter stating I would receive my refund in 6-8 days. It is now July 28, 2010. I have spoken to several reps and was told the check had been mailed on July 2, 2010.

I called around the 12th of July after "no show" of check. I've been given a run around about them sending my refund ever since. I requested to have it put back on my credit card but was told it would take 20 days to do it that way and they would send out another refund check (which was on July 23rd). Needless to say, I'm feeling stalled and conned. It is now the 28th of July and no check. The economic consequence is I'm out of $228, which I need so that I can use it for a legitimate health insurance policy. Physical, is stress and aggravation of speaking with many different reps that can't tell me where my money is.

My daughter needed short term month to month coverage. There was no mention of medical or dental wait times of coverage. After a couple of months, she had an impacted wisdom tooth that had to be extracted. Now they say we had a twelve month wait period that was never mentioned. Now we owe just under $600.00. I would avoid them at all costs. The cost to me was $585.00.

Thay take your money, reject you for reasons that make no sense, the interviewers are not health professionals or sound like they are well trained and then take their sweet time returning your money. Almost $300 and I have not been refunded. They have quite a scam going, money for nothing. Beware, although the prices look good don't go to them for a quote, So far they wasted my time and waiting for my money

I applied Golden Rule. They asked me stupid questions. How I became deaf? Was deafness worse or same? They send some one come to my house and do the blood pressure, height, and weight measurement. I have never heard of anything like this stupid company who would send someone out. They said it might be declined because I am deaf. I refused to have someone to come to my house to do blood pressure, height and weight measurements.

I am unemployed and attempting to find healthcare coverage. I spoke on the phone with a United Healthcare rep to receive a quote. He forwarded me a link to apply so that the underwriters can determine what my premium should be. The application contained a field for bank information so that the first month's premium could be deducted. Nowhere did it indicate that it would happen immediately. Two days later, before I had heard back from the underwriters and before I was ever notified of the premium amount, Golden Rule debited my account for $130. After much arguing with another rep, they agreed to reimburse me this cost. Unfortunately, it will take 12-18 days before they even issue the check. As a person with no income, this is detrimental to me. The rep I spoke with was very unapologetic and pushed the blame on the initial sales person with whom I spoke. I'm disgusted and will not go through them regardless of what rate they are able to give me.

i had insurance with golden rule insurance after i got laid off a lost my insurance,so took this policy with them,they reviewed my status and about a week they sent me my card and said i was approved and had been paying on my doctor bills until i was put in the hosiptal for two days,now they want pay,i am unemployed and have no income,and i have several bills that they want pay. i cant pay those bills with no income thats why i took out the policy, i was paying a high monthly bill to them, they were taking my money but dont want to pay now.

Until recently, my wife and I had a health insurance policy with a subsidiary of United Healthcare, a company which markets itself as Golden Rule.

The policy lapsed for one month due to nonpayment of premium (one missed payment). We were told to re-apply for insurance with the company, - implying that we could not reinstate the policy, and the reinstatement would be treated as a new application (We have been insured with the company for 7 or so years).

My wife has a long term health problem, not life threatening, just an annoyance, called Crest Syndrome, which was excluded from the original policy 7 years ago, and we accepted that fact. On application for reinstatement my wife has been declined, based on the very same condition, having made no claim on the company for the condition at any time.

It seems to us that this is an unfair and unreasonable business practice, given that the condition was excluded in any event at the outset. There have been no other changes since the policy lapsed and we have told the company that in a recorded telephone conversation.

There seems little point in trying to deal with the company directly, given that if this is normal business practice for them, one wonders what twists and turns it might make if confronted.

We can only hope in desperation that someone somewhere in Washington can put an end to these kinds of practices, and although intervention by someone who can deal with this directly would be welcome, - we write this letter in the hope at the very least that the right kind of legislative changes can be enacted, so that others may indeed be more fortunate.

Previously I had filed a complaint on 3/5/09. I have received a letter in the mail from United Health Care/Golden Rule stating that since my wife is pregnant that they will not be able to reinstate our insurance. It was their biling error in December of 2008 of over $50, 000.00 When I spoke with United Health Care/Golden Rule at the time they told me everthing would be taken care of. After the error was corrected they were to send a certified letter stating how much we currently owed. We never received anything in the mail showing the correction.

They said that they mailed notices to us, but we never received anything in the mail. I find it to convienet that we found out that my wife was pregnant in November 2008 and in December 2008 United Health Care/Golden Rule made a $50,000.00 billing error. Nobody would pay $50,000.00 for one payment. That is why we were waiting to see if the correction was going to taken care of. Now I know that the reason they let it lapse and did not notify us was because they knew that my wife was pregnant, we were paying extra for maternity care. We have proof of their billing error in December. They had no intentions of continuing our policy, their excuse is that they are cutting back due to the economy. If this is not resolved I will be going to the Better Business Bureau, and it will be put in newspapers all over. I have a good friend that would love to here this at CBS and he will be calling me back when he can put it on air.

This is our first baby and my wife & I do not need this stress. I will be spending $20,000.00 on a lawyer to get this resolved. At this point I do not care if they think that I am slandering their name. Everything was fine in 2008 on statements and billing. Why now in 2009 has everything changed...because they knew that my was pregnant. We have tried to talk with the insurance company, but all they tell us is well this is what my computer tells me. Even my agent has tried to talk with them.

I sustained an injury to my thumb while living in Florida and was treated in the ER. The doctor called in a hand specialist on call at the hospital and she told him what to do and told me to see her in her office the next day to continue treatment. The ER doctor dictated the diagnosis and the medical transcriber assigned a code. The hospital submitted the claim and was paid after I paid a $1,000 deductible.

The problem is the doctor that I saw the next day, who was the one who told the doctor what was wrong and what to do in the ER, sent in a claim to the insurance company with another code. Both codes were similar, but made it sound like I had two separate injuries. I sent paperwork which shows it was the same exact thumb and the same injury and also tried hard to have either the hospital send a corrected code or the doctor change the code, but neither would.

Now the insurance company wants another deductible paid in order for the doctor to be paid since because of the two codes the insurance company sees it as two separate injuries. I sent a number of documents that showed it was obviously the same injury and yet the person I listed above sent a letter saying again it looked like two separate injuries. As stated in this newest letter...medical plan you had with us included a per condition deductible....the maximum plan benefits have been paid. In other words, they still view it as two separate injuries.

The fact that the insurance company can use a small technicality to get away with paying a claim doesn't seem ethical. The time and expense incurred trying to deal with this situation is insane and dealing with one person after another who refuses to see the facts. This whole experience has made my wife an emotional wreck and is just another example of insurance company fraud. Saying they will pay for health care and then finding a loophole to not have to pay.

Why are we having to deal with other people's mistakes and having to come up with additional money when the deductible was already met? It may not seem like a big deal, but if they did this to us, how many other people has this happened to? One other thing, how can hospitals or doctors get away with dictating incorrect diagnoses? After filing a complaint about it and asking that it be corrected, the hospital refused. Florida Hospital-Adventist Healthcare, Winter Park, FL

Golden Rule denied me health insurance coverage citing a condition that I have never been diagnose with and was corroborated by my doctor. They also withdrew the premium out of our bank account without covering us and stated it was 'standard'. We decided to get our own health insurance, as opposed to opting for Cobra with my previous employer, until I am elegible for the benefits with the new company.

They are holding money that belongs to us and we arent even covered.

My husband and I applied for joint coverage on August 25th. The premium for both of us was taken out of our checking account on August 28th. They obtained our medical records and determined that they would decline to cover my husband, actually for reasons that were inaccurate, but that is not my complaint. After this, they did not refund the premium. They were repeatedly advised, both by phone and in writing, and also by email, that we didn't want to split our coverage so please return the premium. In response, they sent me a policy around October 1, with a stated effective date of coverage for just me on September 1, and withdrew another partial premium from my checking. I had to call my bank to ask that they not permit any further withdrawls.

I had to call my bank to ask that they not permit any further withdrawals. This will cost me $30 per transaction. I still have to pay for my previous insurance, and don't have the money in the bank and may now bounce checks, because Golden Rule won't replace the money they took.

Economically, I a stuck paying 1100 for insurance coverage for my family. I have coverage through another insurance company, but I was trying to lower my cost.

In general this insurance company was horrible. They had all sorts of excuses for denying claims. The customer service number is a toll number. The HSA I got was a nightmare. I would NOT recommend this insurance.

In May 03, I filed a Consumer Complaint against the above for claiming my injury was pre existing. After proving, it was not, I received a letter from Dee Jennings (golden Rule) it would be paid. I have now received a bill From the MRI for $1104, which is the bill this insurance company claimed would be paid. After speaking to Ms. Paddock, Manager of Claims, she stated they are not paying & it doesn't matter how many letters I write, I will not win. I have sent a copy to the president, Mr. Jack Whelan & have not received a courtesy letter from him. I want a refund for my years payments to this company of $245 a month or my $1104 bill paid as stated they would.