American Aviation Title Service

We reviewed the patient complaint and the patient record Documentation shows that the patient did not complain of any pain at her initial visit The patient had dental decay on tooth #which was subsequently filled by the doctor The doctor had a telephone conversation with the patient on March 24, to discuss the patient’s dental pain The doctor offered to have the patient come into the office to re-evaluate her symptoms at no charge but she said she was not interested in that so the doctor recommended evaluation by another provider, an endodontist, as he was concerned the patient may be developing an infection based on her reported symptoms The patient stated she wanted reimbursement for the filling that had been done on tooth #and then she hung up on the doctor The patient utilized the referral to a specialist and received the necessary help to correct her issue which was on an entirely different tooth, # In summary, the doctor was responsive to the patient, he contacted her to offer to see her regarding her tooth pain, he sent her a referral to a specialist when she would not see him so her problem was then addressed The original filling that was placed was necessary due to dental decay, and it was not the tooth that bothered the patient later so there is no reason to refund the patient for the cost

We reviewed the patient complaint and the account details We are sorry that this patient was not satisfied with her experienceWe completed a review of this case and confirmed that the treatment provided was appropriate and done well With any large filling there is the possibility of post-operative sensitivity and the potential for further treatment needs such as a root canal The doctor did have difficulty obtaining adequate anesthesia, but this does happen on occasion There was an error made in administering a very small amount of septocaine during a periodontal ligament injection and the doctor sincerely apologizes for this The standard protocols and strict infection control guidelines were followed for the dental procedure and the patient’s care following the procedure Unfortunately, the evening the patient called the practice the doctor normally scheduled for that time was out of the office recovering from emergency surgery The patient was given the option to wait approximately minutes for the on-call doctor or to be seen the next morning at 7:00am She did consult with the doctor on-call and was seen by him the next day per her choice and she was well cared for In light of the patient’s dissatisfaction with her experience, the doctor has provided her a courtesy refund in the amount that she had paid totaling $A call was made to inform the patient of the refund to her credit card

Our Practice Manager contacted the patient and scheduled a meeting to review her account We are assisting the doctor who merged his practice with ours to collect on his prior outstanding account balances The patient brought all of her statements from the doctor and reviewed them with the Practice Manager who agreed that all she owes the doctor is $ The Practice Manager adjusted off $from the previous account The patient said that she will pay in full once she receives her new statement and said she was happy with the resolution

I am rejecting this response because: This statement is entirely falseThe reason for my initial visit was due to sensitivity in the toothThis the reason for follow up visits to correct the problem

Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 5, 2015/10/20) */ We reviewed the patient complaint and the account detailsThere was an error made in the posting of the patient's insurance paymentThe error was corrected on October 2, after a call from the patientThe practice manager called the patient on that date to confirm that the account had been correctedThe patient called her back on October 5, She explained that the error had been corrected and a refund check had been requestedThe patient said this was not acceptable and hung up on the telephone callThe refund check in the amount of $was mailed to the patient on October 8, As of today, October 20, the check has not been cashedThe practice manager called the patient this morning and left a messageShe would like to again apologize that an error in posting had occurred and to reiterate that we have done our best to correct the problem and to promptly provide the refund check Initial Consumer Rebuttal / [redacted] (2000, 7, 2015/10/20) */

We reviewed the patient complaint and the patient record.  Documentation shows that the patient did not complain of any pain at her initial visit.  The patient had dental decay on tooth #3 which was subsequently filled by the doctor.  The doctor had a telephone conversation with the...

patient on March 24, 2017 to discuss the patient’s dental pain.  The doctor offered to have the patient come into the office to re-evaluate her symptoms at no charge but she said she was not interested in that so the doctor recommended evaluation by another provider, an endodontist, as he was concerned the patient may be developing an infection based on her reported symptoms.  The patient stated she wanted reimbursement for the filling that had been done on tooth #3 and then she hung up on the doctor.   The patient utilized the referral to a specialist and received the necessary help to correct her issue which was on an entirely different tooth, #4.   In summary, the doctor was responsive to the patient, he contacted her to offer to see her regarding her tooth pain, he sent her a referral to a specialist when she would not see him so her problem was then addressed.  The original filling that was placed was necessary due to dental decay, and it was not the tooth that bothered the patient later so there is no reason to refund the patient for the cost.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/31) */
We reviewed the patient complaint and the account details. On August 17th the Practice Manager had a telephone conversation with the patient. He wanted to know why we took radiographs that his dental insurance company did not cover. She...

explained to him that the panoramic image was needed in order for him to be ready for the oral surgery consultation that he needed. The patient claimed that he was told that the radiograph would be "free of charge". The Practice Manager explained to him that we are very careful when discussing what is covered by insurance and what is not since every insurance company is different in what procedures are covered. She also stated that we would never tell a patient that a service would be "free of charge". At the end of the call the patient thanked her for the explanation. Per our payment policy that the patient signed, the patient is responsible for all charges that are not covered by his insurance company.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/08/31) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
First, the response did not address why the bill was sent 6 months after the service.
Second, I was told the x-ray would be free of charge because my insurance would cover it.
Hence, I respectfully decline the response.

Our Practice Manager contacted the patient and scheduled a meeting to review her account.  We are assisting the doctor who merged his practice with ours to collect on his prior outstanding account balances.  The patient brought all of her statements from the doctor and reviewed them with...

the Practice Manager who agreed that all she owes the doctor is $157.00.  The Practice Manager adjusted off $159.00 from the previous account.  The patient said that she will pay in full once she receives her new statement and said she was happy with the resolution.

I am rejecting this response because:
This statement is entirely false. The reason for my initial visit was due to sensitivity in the tooth. This the reason for follow up visits to correct the problem.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/02/18) */
We reviewed the patient complaint and the account details. We are sorry for the error made in setting up wife's account and have been working to correct the problem with their dental insurance company. Unfortunately the wife's insurance was...

originally set up with the incorrect relationship to the subscriber on her account so the claims for 3/24/15 and 10/6/15 were paid and processed under the husband. Therefore, when the husband went to his dental office, his services were denied by the insurance company.
As soon as the practice manager was made aware of the error she sent in corrected claims for the wife and she also asked the insurance company to remove the incorrect claims for the husband. She believed that it had been corrected when we received the corrected EOB on 11/24/15 (for DOS 10/6/15) and the corrected EOB on 2/4/16 (for DOS 3/24/15). Once she was again notified that the insurance company did not follow through to correct the claims for the husband she again contacted the insurance company to request the correction. The practice manager has spoken with the husband multiple times and has made every effort to resolve the problem in a timely manner. She also contacted the husband's dental office per his request to help resolve the issue. When she spoke to representatives at the husband's dental office she was very careful with patient privacy and did not tell them why this issue occurred in the first place or that it was related to the wife's dental claims. The practice manager did tell them that she had sent in a narrative to the husband's dental insurance company asking them to delete the claims for him at Park Dental and advised them to contact the insurance company to follow up and re-file their claims for the husband.
We have apologized for the error and have made every effort to correct the problem with the insurance company and we have maintained patient confidentiality throughout the process. The practice manager spent time on the telephone again today with the husband explaining the steps that have been taken to resolve this problem. We believe that he has a better understanding now.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2016/02/18) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I have always had a complete understanding of the issue. To date a refund has not been issued to my insurance company for services not provided (Park Dental has been paid twice for services rendered once). Park Dental has been waiting for Delta Dental Ins to request their money back; which is completely unnecessary. They can, and should, refund the money at any time. Park Dental continues to blame Delta Dental Ins., for their own mistakes. This is not resolved until the refund prices is complete. I have filed a grievance with Delta Dental indicating I was billed for services by this provider, to whom I have never set foot in their practice. So far nothing but 'narratives' have been sent to the insurance provider, no refunds. They want their money back, not a bunch of words and apologies.
Final Consumer Response /* (2000, 10, 2016/02/23) */
On 2-22-16 Park Dental contacted me and assured me the refund was issued to Delta Dental. I feel comfortable that this issue will be satisfactorily resolved.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

We reviewed the patient complaint and the account details.  We are sorry that this patient was not satisfied with her experience. We completed a review of this case and confirmed that the treatment provided was appropriate and done well.  With any large filling there is the possibility of...

post-operative sensitivity and the potential for further treatment needs such as a root canal.  The doctor did have difficulty obtaining adequate anesthesia, but this does happen on occasion.  There was an error made in administering a very small amount of septocaine during a periodontal ligament injection and the doctor sincerely apologizes for this.  The standard protocols and strict infection control guidelines were followed for the dental procedure and the patient’s care following the procedure.  Unfortunately, the evening the patient called the practice the doctor normally scheduled for that time was out of the office recovering from emergency surgery.  The patient was given the option to wait approximately 30 minutes for the on-call doctor or to be seen the next morning at 7:00am.  She did consult with the doctor on-call and was seen by him the next day per her choice and she was well cared for.  In light of the patient’s dissatisfaction with her experience, the doctor has provided her a courtesy refund in the amount that she had paid totaling $100.68. A call was made to inform the patient of the refund to her credit card.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/10/20) */
We reviewed the patient complaint and the account details. There was an error made in the posting of the patient's insurance payment. The error was corrected on October 2, 2015 after a call from the patient. The practice manager called the...

patient on that date to confirm that the account had been corrected. The patient called her back on October 5, 2015. She explained that the error had been corrected and a refund check had been requested. The patient said this was not acceptable and hung up on the telephone call. The refund check in the amount of $33.80 was mailed to the patient on October 8, 2015. As of today, October 20, 2015 the check has not been cashed. The practice manager called the patient this morning and left a message. She would like to again apologize that an error in posting had occurred and to reiterate that we have done our best to correct the problem and to promptly provide the refund check.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/10/20) */