We know health care billing can seem complicated - so we work hard to ensure your experience with Sharp is straightforward and accurate.

We process your bill in six steps.

1. When you go to the hospital for a medical procedure or to your doctor's office for a checkup, we confirm your billing information - including who is responsible for payment and which health insurance plan should be billed.
2. Following your medical procedure, our billing office files a claim with your primary health insurance for the services performed. In many cases, payment is sent directly to us from your health insurance provider.
3. If there is a problem with the information provided, and your insurance plan will not pay, our billing office attempts to correct the information and refile the claim.
4. After your claim is processed by your primary health insurance plan, our billing office will file claims with any secondary or supplemental insurance organizations that you have provided to us.
5. When all insurance has been processed, you are billed if there is any unpaid patient responsibility and will receive a statement in the mail. If you cannot pay the entire amount, you can set up a payment plan via Sharp Account for qualifying or eligible hospital bills.
6. Our billing office will make several attempts to collect payment. If you do not pay the entire amount or contact the billing office to arrange a payment plan, your account will be sent to a collection agency.

If you have any questions about the process or your specific bill, please don't hesitate to send us an email or give us a call:

• Sharp hospitals: 858-499-2400
• Sharp Rees-Stealy: 858-499-2410
• SharpCare: 858-499-2044
• Sharp Specialty Groups: 858-346-4321

We want to make it as easy as possible to manage your bills, which is why we offer paperless billing. You can choose how you want to receive your billing statements and notifications - via mail, email or both.

To get started, sign in to your Sharp Account and select "Paperless Billing" from the menu options. Follow the prompts to set your billing preferences.

Don't have a Sharp Account? Learn how to create one now.

You can also use Sharp Account to view itemized bills, check your current balance and view your payment history.

If you opt for paperless billing, you may continue to receive paper bills for some services for yourself or loved ones.

At this time, paperless billing is only available for Sharp Rees-Stealy and Sharp hospital bills.

Request a price estimate to learn more about charges for services at a Sharp hospital or Sharp Rees-Stealy location. One of our financial counselors will provide estimated out-of-pocket costs for your care with us.

We are making improvements to how you can view and pay your bills through your Sharp Account. When you create an account on sharp.com, you will be able to view your statements for Sharp Rees-Stealy and Sharp hospitals in one place, make payments and pay all your invoices by credit card, debit card or via your checking account in one transaction. You will also be able to save your preferred payment method for future use. Get started now.

If you prefer not to create an account, you can still pay your bill online by using our one-time payment form.

SharpCare Medical Group patients can use this form to make online payments.

You can pay by credit or debit card or by check. You will need to provide your personal information and the invoice or visit number from your paper statement for each payment. You can also use this form to pay a bill for another person.

To pay by credit card over the phone, please call Patient Financial Services:

• Sharp hospitals: 858-499-2400
• Sharp Rees-Stealy: 858-499-2410
• SharpCare: 858-499-2044
• Sharp Specialty Groups: 858-346-4321

You may also pay in cash at the hospital or clinic or mail your payment to the address listed on your statement. All standard forms of payment are accepted, including cash, check, cashier's check, money order and major credit cards.

You can use your Sharp Account to make a partial payment on a bill. However, making a partial payment will not prevent a past-due bill from going to a collections agency.

Sharp HealthCare offers many payment options, including monthly payment installments for qualified or eligible hospital bills, which you can set up via Sharp Account.

If you would like to discuss your bill or payment options, please give us a call:

• Sharp hospitals: 858-499-2400
• Sharp Rees-Stealy: 858-499-2410
• SharpCare: 858-499-2044
• Sharp Specialty Groups: 858-346-4321

Your bill will list the services you received under the "Summary of Patient Services." To see an example of a bill like yours, with descriptions for each section, please review our sample bill.

If you still need answers, please send us an email or give us a call:

• Sharp hospitals: 858-499-2400
• Sharp Rees-Stealy: 858-499-2410
• SharpCare: 858-499-2044
• Sharp Specialty Groups: 858-346-4321

It's not uncommon to receive statements or bills from more than one provider for one hospital visit. We're here to help shed light on the bills you may receive.

Every hospital visit involves both physician and hospital resources. Although physicians are licensed to practice at Sharp's hospitals, they are not Sharp HealthCare employees. This means the hospital and each of your treating physicians will send you a bill for their parts of your care.

For example, if you had an emergency room visit that required X-rays and lab tests, you may receive a bill from the hospital for technical resources, a bill from the emergency room physician for professional services, a bill from the radiologist for interpreting your X-rays and a bill from the pathologist for analyzing specimens from your lab tests.

Types of bills you may receive:

• Hospital bills
  Billing for services performed at a Sharp hospital for inpatient or outpatient care include: room and board, emergency room services, supplies, nursing care, therapy (physical, speech, etc.), surgeries, treatment, lab tests, radiology (X-rays) and more.
• Physician bills
  Billing for professional services performed by doctors at Sharp hospitals and medical offices include: office visits, minor procedures, surgeries, consultations, reviewing lab tests and X-rays and more.
• Contracted provider bills
  In addition to doctors, many contracted health care providers - ambulance companies, diagnostic services, labs and radiologists (outside of the hospital) - may bill you separately for their services.
• In-network and out-of-network services
  If you have health insurance, your insurance plan may have preferred "in-network" providers for outpatient lab services, ambulance services, outpatient surgery, physicians, specialty physicians, pharmacy and more. Only your health insurance plan can tell you who the contracted providers are for your particular plan and benefits.
  -In-network providers are contracted by your insurance plan to provide your health care services at pre-negotiated rates
  -Out-of-network providers are not contracted by your insurance plan, and you may be responsible for paying full charges or a higher share of charges should these providers treat you

If you have questions about your covered services, copays or deductibles - or which providers are in-network or out-of-network in your insurance plan - please call your health insurance company to confirm your coverage.

You may receive a bill from us after your health insurance plan processes our bill. The amount you are charged is the portion of your bill your insurance policy does not cover - it is based on what your insurance plan communicates to us on your explanation of benefits (EOB).

Your insurance plan also mails you an EOB, which details how they processed our bill and calculated your responsibility based on your individual insurance plan. If you believe your responsibility is inaccurate, please contact your insurance plan directly.

Every hospital visit involves both physician and hospital resources. Although the hospital and the physician may use the same language to describe each charge, their bills are for separate services. The physician's bill will be for the professional services. The hospital's bill will be for the technical resources and supplies, such as procedures and equipment, needles and scalpels or medications.

A copay is a predetermined (flat) fee that you pay for health care services, in addition to what your health insurance plan pays.

A deductible is the annual amount that you must pay, out of pocket, before an insurance plan begins reimbursing for eligible services.

Coinsurance takes place when you reach your deductible and you and your insurance plan share in paying a percentage of the remaining costs. The percentage you pay of the remaining costs depends on your plan. For example, if your deductible has been met and your coinsurance is 20 percent, your plan will cover the remaining 80 percent of covered services. Typically, you will pay your percentage of costs until you reach your plan's annual out-of-pocket maximum.

Please refer to our Billing, Collections and Bad Debt policy.

If you believe that the determination is not correct, you or your authorized representative has the right to appeal the decision by filing a grievance with your health plan. Please submit a copy of the front and back of your statement and a brief explanation of your situation, along with any other relevant information, to the address of your health plan. Find your health plan's address (PDF).