navigating denied medical bills

Last May, my family member spent 12 painful hours in the ER, only to receive basic checks and an IV. Fast forward to nearly the end of February 2025, and we finally got a $409.55 bill from the doctor, which our insurance, Florida Blue, denied. They also denied a whopping $7,172 ER bill that we haven't even received yet. In June, the same hospital charged us $1,876.02 for a surgery. I tried disputing it over the phone, but no luck. I'm unsure if we qualify for financial assistance since our income is low, but we have some savings in stocks. What can we do to reduce these costs? What happens if we can't pay? #MedicalBills #InsuranceWoes #FinancialAssistance