I've Been Advised By My Doctor To Take Legal Action Against My Insurance Company.

Long story short: I am a heart patient in my 30s. My insurance company has denied a procedure that is recommended by my cardiologist. The insurance company considers the minimally invasive procedure as experimental, and only covers traditional open-heart surgery for my specific treatment. My cardiologist has appealed this at multiple levels, and even the hospital as an entity escalated the case and was denied. If you'd like more information about the condition I have and the recommended procedure, I can elaborate.

My cardiologist is pissed. He states their policy is outdated by about fifteen years and that "they are fucking wrong." He repeated this last statement quite a few times.

While he still wants to gather some more documentation to build our case, he recommends that I consider consulting lawyers and threaten the insurance company with legal action. He also states that he will gladly testify against the insurance company. My doctor even recommended that I sue for damages, as my condition is objectively getting worse over time and they are delaying its treatment.

I have started steps on my own appealing and / or escalating this on my own with my insurance company, but have yet to hear back and it's been a couple of weeks. I've also been recommended to consult my state's insurance department who may help me handle this. I've left a voicemail with them, but have not yet heard back. I suppose I need to be more persistent.

I don't really know if I can afford a lawyer at this time. Can I at least get a free consultation with one? What kind of lawyer would I even need for this? Would it even be worthwhile? I honestly don't even know where to start.