I figured I'd keep this open for anyone else's questions too, but here's mine.

I don't have insurance right now and didn't for quite a while before (I was recently on a high-deductible plan and then screwed up the billing so I'm now waiting a month to get back on it).

Anyway, when I see a doctor now I give a false name. I figure if they discover I have xxx disease or a problem with yyy I don't have to worry about this causing me to not get coverage from my future insurer for this pre-existing condition.

My 2 questions are:
1) Are there any realistic drawbacks to this? I've done this twice with a doctor and once on a referral to another doctor and no one asked for ID. I know if I got a prescription for a controlled substance it could be a problem since they'd want ID
2) Is this even necessary? Can my insurance company even find out about these records if I don't tell them I've been to xxx doctor?

lol. get insurance bro its gonna be a law soon

can't answer your question. just make sure you don't post on 2p2 under a false name. that'll be trouble for sure.

Fraud is usually my solution to life problems as well.

This is why I killed my twin when I was three. I just use his ID.

Uh as someone who just had to go to the hospital out of the blue. Get your self something...the bill is no joke

Just give the dr. a fake ss# and a fake middle initial. And be sure to use a different address. That way the MIB won't think it's you.

I like to keep my name but go to an anonymous doctor

Just to clarify, I am getting insurance (there's a waiting period).

Anyway, no one has any answers?

I've been in the medical field working with insurance for 3 years, so I can probably help you

You give a fake name at visits with no insurance? Do you self pay for the visits? This doesn't make much sense. Most offices are asking for photo ids now to prevent fraud.

Should have kept him around longer for spare body parts.

Self pay, yeah. Two different offices, three visits, no one has asked for ID. Neither office even took insurance I don't think ($50-$75 visits, cash or credit card only).

You're fine

I was three and had nowhere to store him. Cannot all be winners.

If you weren't covered in the time period you were self-paying, you didn't have to give a fake name. This happens with a lot of people and they just pay. No drawbacks except paying out of your own pocket.

Now your doctor will prob want info on your new condition if you consented to a release, and now he/she will won't understand why Joe Smith is you!

Your insurance company doesn't seek out medical visits in periods that you weren't covered

I actually work for one of the biggest medical insurance companies out there. When we do pre-existing investigations we get most of the info from the patient. And then additional info from the doctors you tell us about.

So you don't have to actually make up fake names or anything. Its so much easier than that. Just see a new doctor once your insurance starts and never mention your old doctors or hospital visits. If you have AIDS and need treatment, just say you need tested and act as if you never knew.

Not true. If your plan does not cover pre-existing conditions, then they look back to a period between 3-6 months (usually) before you became active on the their policy. They will check regardless if you had other coverage or not.

I meant that they won't seek out visits to pay for if you weren't covered at that specific time

Huh?

Of course they wouldn't consider a medical claim if you are not active on their plan at the time. What does that have to do with pre-existing though???

just saying that he didn't need to provide a false name

Right... But what does this have to do with pre-existing? OP is stating he is providing a fake name to avoid having pre-existing conditions denied once his new policy starts. Your reasoning as to why he does not need to provide a fake name makes no sense imo.

Bottom line, they cannot look back 6 months prior to coverage without op's consent. I was talking about a different issue op seemed concerned about

I didn't see any other issue. But insurance companies can look back six months into your medical history. I work in pre-existing every day so I know what I am talking about. It is up to the patient to give the information needed to conduct the pre-existing investigation. If they don't submit the information then we deny all claims related to pre-x.

Thanks to you and to misty. This is exactly what I was trying to figure out, if they could/would seek out my previous records.

Using a fake name wasn't much of a problem but the most recent time I had a referral and a prescription (prescription was actually for something available OTC) so it was getting to be a headache.

By the way, if you're actually trying it's amazing how cheap you can get a lot of basic medical care. I wouldn't necessarily go to these places for more complicated issues, but so far I've been really satisfied and spent very little money. Even if I hadn't inadvertently had my insurance cancelled I might have still gone this route of self-paying considering my $3k deductible.

What about the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) report?

Pretty sure they collect all medical info from Dr. visits. Certainly, they retain records by ss# and name.

And don't forget the Pharmacy records, as well.