Legal services ยท Health Consumer Alliance
Health Consumer Alliance (California)
A statewide partnership of legal aid organizations offering free help by phone or in person to Californians with Medi-Cal, Covered California or private coverage, including disputing denials and billing problems.
Know before you go
The page says the Alliance provides free legal services to all consumers in all languages, regardless of income, and helps Californians apply for coverage, dispute denials of health services and resolve billing problems. It also serves as the Medicare Medi-Cal Ombuds Program for people enrolled in both programs. The page says it is supported by California state agencies, Covered California, a foundation and other partners. Hours are not stated on the page we read.
- Cost
- Free, regardless of income (as the page states)
- Where
- California
- How to start
- Call the hotline at 888-804-3536. For hard-of-hearing assistance, use 1-877-735-2929.
- Phone
- 888-804-3536, as printed on the provider's page
- Have ready
- Your coverage type and plan name; The denial or bill; The county where you live
Where this comes from
- Provider
- Health Consumer Alliance
- Source we read
- https://healthconsumer.org/about/
- Date we read it
- . This is not a fresh check.
- Date the provider printed
- Not displayed
- What we checked
- We read the provider's public page. We have not verified availability, eligibility or outcomes for any individual.
Other starting points
- Program or service
1-800-MEDICARE: talk to a person about Medicare
The Medicare phone line and live chat, open all day every day. Staff can point you to the right step for a complaint, and can pass an unresolved complaint to the Medicare Beneficiary Ombudsman.
From Medicare (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
- Program or service
American Cancer Society 24-hour helpline
A phone and chat line staffed around the clock by cancer information specialists who answer questions and connect you to services. It is an information and referral line, not an appeals service.
From American Cancer Society
- Program or service
An Arm and a Leg: First Aid Kit
An archive of articles and starter packs from the podcast An Arm and a Leg, including a starter pack on what to do if you are in collections for medical debt. General reporting on health care costs, not appeal steps.
From An Arm and a Leg