I took some time out to call all of the medical bills that I’m paying to make sure nothing’s behind or late. I think I have everything with the special discount programs at the hospital down as low as possible and the monthly payments on all total are pretty reasonable.
My biggest problem, of course was keeping track of everything. I’m eternally wondering if I’ve paid something, if I forgot to pay something or if I’m going to forget to pay something. Unfortunately, not paying or paying late isn’t an option for me on the medical bills, because this could result in voiding the payment plans or discount I’ve received on the bills. I definitely can’t afford to let that happen.
Tips for Keeping Payments Organized
Keep a Calendar: Whether online or printed, a calendar with big enough spaces to write when things need to be paid helps out a lot. I prefer printed calendars, and for a while even used just printed pages of each month of simple Word program calendar pages. Now I’m trying out a small monthly pocket calendar, but I think the daily spaces are too small for the things I need to keep track of.
Keep a Notebook: Even if you happen to be uber organized and file your statements religiously in the appropriately tabbed folders, it is still nice to have a notebook with account numbers for utilities, phone numbers, and other contact information. I wrote everything down in a small notebook that I carry with me today, while on the phone with each facility. Let’s face it, we aren’t always at home next to the filing cabinet when we need that information.
Keep Envelopes and Stamps Handy: This may seem strange because almost everything is accessible online now. Who still needs envelopes and stamps? I do, that’s who. I have one bill that does not accept payments online or over the phone and for this reason gets forgotten quite often. It does help to have the supplies I need right with me so I can write out the check and send it out while I’m sitting in the car or at work. My electric bill, for example does accept online payments but costs I think 3.95 to pay that way, which I won’t do. Paying online is convenient and nice, but I won’t pay anything extra for it. So, that bill has to be mailed in as well.
With all of the iPhone apps available, I’m sure there are pretty cool apps that can probably handle all three of these tips. I happen to not have an iPhone yet, though it’s at the top of my list of things I absolutely, really want and will starve for. There are also a number of computer programs that will regulate everything for you, but I don’t always have access to my computer. This, my friends, is why I carry around such a big bag (dubbed my “suitcase”) by many that know me. I need everything in that bag. Okay, maybe not the empty gum wrappers and Barbie sunglasses, but this is how I remember and keep track of my bills.
What do you do to help keep your bills organized? (And don’t worry if you’re using a method from the 90s, I’m still dragging around notebooks and stuff…)