Apria Healthcare

We would like to apologize for the level of customer service you recently experienced regarding your respiratory equipment. After a review of your records, we confirmed that you are requesting to have complete ownership of your new equipment rather than renting for the allotted time. Your insurance...

provider requires clinical documentation from the prescribing physician before consideration for the new equipment. We have requested the required documents from the prescribing physician. Also, the customer service representative attempted to contact you; however, a voice message was left for you informing you of this.   Again, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience or challenges this issued may have caused.  We greatly appreciate you for taking the time to bring your concerns to our attention. We welcome all patient feedback as this provides us with a valuable insight into our services from the patient’s perspective which allows us to make service improvements, as it has done in this case.     Sincerely,   Apria Healthcare, LLC

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]

Item # 1:Mr. [redacted] states that his wife paid a balance that was paid by his insurance. He states they wereinformed they would receive a refund check, however they have not.RESPONSE:We have reviewed Mr. [redacted]’s account and found that the supplies that were shipped tohim on August 4, 2014, were...

incorrect and items were shipped back. The correct supplyorder was shipped on August 12, 2014. Mr. [redacted] paid for the August 4, 2014 supplieswhen the balance should have been adjusted, however it was not done until later.On December 1, 2014, we reversed Mr. [redacted]’s payment and requested a refund beprocessed to him. We requested a refund to the insurance for all amounts paid on theAugust 4, 2014 supplies and keyed adjustments on the supplies.We apologize for the delay in the refund check, it was processed on February 10, 2015, inthe amount of $258.53.Sincerely,[redacted]Billing Center Quality Specialist

ITEM # 1: Ms. [redacted] states that she spoke with an Apria representative who informed her that she could use the November certification to resubmit the previous billing for the months of April 2014 to current. She states the representative also told her that she would reimburse her credit card for the November charges as Apria did not have permission to charge her account. Ms. [redacted] states her son spoke with me on the same day, which explained that she would need to file an appeal with Medicare with the documentation that Apria was unable to obtain from the physician. Ms. [redacted] states she is still very unclear as to whether this will be taken care of because two different Apria employees gave two different responses. She states the problem has always been with Apria and its Apria employee’s job to get the documentation even if they have to call every day numerous times. RESPONSE: As we explained in our first response, we tried to obtain the needed documentation from the physician multiple times. However, we were unable to obtain the documentation until November 2014. Apria works to obtain the needed documentation and bills the patients insurance as a courtesy. We explained to Ms. [redacted] what was needed before Medicare would pay and even provided her with documentation that did not qualify as she was going to see the physician. We listened to the call that Ms. [redacted]’ referred to in her complaint. [redacted], informed Ms. [redacted] that we needed the recertification in order to bill the insurance for the April – November claims. Which we had not received and did not know if the insurance would cover the claims if we received the documentation now. There was nothing stated in the call regarding a refund. On the call with Ms. [redacted]’s son, I did explain that the patient could file an appeal on her behalf with Medicare, as we had not been able to obtain the qualifying documentation until November 2014. The doctor’s office is saying they sent the documentation to Apria, however, the documentation did not qualify per Medicare guidelines. If the doctor ‘s office can provide documentation to Ms. [redacted] that qualifies per Medicare guidelines, then I would suggest she file an appeal, however Apria never received that documentation. As for Apria not having authorization to charge Ms. [redacted]’s credit card, we have a signed Sale Service and Rental Agreement (“SSRA”) with the credit card information provided by Ms. [redacted]. When Ms. [redacted] provided the credit card on the SSRA, she authorized Apria to automatically charge any co-pay, deductible or out of pocket not covered by the insurance. Sincerely,[redacted] Billing Center Quality Specialist

ITEM # 1: Credit for the initial rental fee and a waiver of 3 months rental fee.  RESPONSE: Apria bills the insurance company on behalf of the patient. Apria has a responsibility to charge the patient any coinsurance or deductible fees according to their plan with their insurance carrier. Charges are presented to the patient at the time of setup on the Apria Sales Service & Rental Agreement Form. This form is signed by the patient before receiving the medical equipment. ITEM # 2: Answers to why the order was never processed and what consequences were incurred by the responsible individual RESPONSE: Original order was cancelled in error. Apria has a Quality Assurance Policy in place to review and address any customer service errors. Apria does perform Corrective Actions with staff when deemed appropriate. ITEM # 3: Contact and an explanation from [redacted]’s supervisor whom on 12/31/14 she stated she would inform of my dissatisfaction and contact from [redacted]’s supervisor whom on either 12/10/14 she stated she would inform of my complaint of negligence in processing my husband’s order. RESPONSE: Apria has a process in place for internal escalations. The supervisor of the Escalation Department was informed and followed the progress of this order. This order was in the Escalation Department of Apria. The representatives mentioned on this item are Lead Representatives within Apria’s Escalation Department. They are highly qualified individuals trained to resolve more complex issues. Sincerely,[redacted] Area Customer Service Manager

Item # 1:   The patients father states that they were discharged from the hospital on January 18, 2015 with a portable oxygen tank which lasts 8 days on the current liter flow when they arrived home they contacted Apria Healthcare to notify the company that they had arrived home and that...

they were ready for the home set up while they were on the phone a representative from Apria contacted the family as well to confirm they were home and they would receive their delivery that evening. The next day the family contacted Apria that no delivery was made and the representative could not locate the patient in the system we were told that we would get a delivery that afternoon and again we called since no one had showed up the technician finally arrived at the home at 8:10 PM with the oxygen and was told that the tank that he delivered would last 4 weeks based on the patients liter flow. 3 days later the tank that was delivered was half empty and had to make another call to have a technician come out and deliver a new tank. The technician that came to our home exchanged the tank and said that the tank was set up improperly I am hoping that we are not charged for any fees for Apria’s error. On January 30, 2015 our pediatrician order an O2 test to be performed but we had not heard from Apria so we called and spoke to the representative who said we would be getting it on Monday that never happened until Tuesday February 3, 2015.  RESPONSE After looking into the details of this account I have reached out to [redacted] and have left a couple of messages on his Cell Phone with no return call back starting on 2/6/15 at 2:49pm and 2/11/15 at 11:14am.         Sincerely, [redacted] Branch Manager Denver, Co

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you again for taking the time to convey your concerns to us and to apologize for any miscommunication on our part that may have resulted in your continued concerns. After another review of your records, we have confirmed that the prescribing physician submitted ALL the documentation required by the insurance provider on January 26, 2018. The customer service agent then made several attempts to contacted you (2/1/2018, 2/2/2018 and 2/4/2018). Also, we verified that on February 15, 2018 you received the respiratory equipment and supplies.   Again, we sincerely apologize for any inconveniences or challenges this issued may have caused.   Sincerely,   Apria Healthcare LLC

The patient signed a Sales Service and Rental Agreement authorizing the credit card to be billed for copays, deductibles, and noncovered charges. This is why the credit card was automatically billed.    We do apologize for the issue logging into the website.  There is a forgot...

password, link, however you would need to have the reference code written down, or call the billing department for assistance.  It could take up to 30 days to verify insurance information and bill.  Some insurances require authorizations, documentation to be submitted prior to any billing.   Again, we do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing.   Sincerely,  Apria Healthcare, LLC

Item # 1:Mr. [redacted] stated that Apria Healthcare sent him a printout of charges and payments received, but it did not reflect all payments.  RESPONSE:As mentioned before, we have reviewed Mr. [redacted]’s account and sent per his request an itemized statement specifying the amounts billed and paid for each claim from November 28,2011 through May 29, 2014. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. We do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing. Sincerely,[redacted]Patient Pay Management Center Team Lead

We have reviewed the patient’s account with assistance from our insurance team and confirmed that the account was setup incorrectly as a rental. The equipment was a replacement and should have been setup as a purchase. We have requested that all funds applied to the equipment rentals be...

reversed back to [redacted]. We have also sent a corrected claim to [redacted] for the purchase of the equipment as of March 6, 2018; therefore, the equipment will no longer be billed as a rental. Currently the patient’s account reflects a zero balance. We do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing.   Sincerely,  Apria Healthcare, LLC .

Item # 1:  Mr. [redacted] stated Apria has not provided an explanation of why charges that were a year old appeared on a current statement for the first time and reflected as past due. He stated his account was sent to a collection agency and was informed he would receive a letter from the collections agency as confirmation that it would not reflect on his credit reports.   .RESPONSE: We have reviewed Mr. [redacted] account and confirmed that the billing for dates of services May 10th, 2014 through September 4th, 2014 were for the monthly rentals for his CPAP machine.  The charges for $128.93 were reversed off to be refunded to patient on April 22nd, 2015 but an adjustment was never entered which resulted in Mr. [redacted] receiving a statement for those charges in error. There was only one invoice that was sent to collections in error due to non-payment and it was for date of service September 4th, 2014 but Mr. [redacted] paid the balance for $8.98 and it has been applied to the collections balance.   The charge sent to collections will not reflect on Mr. [redacted] credit report because we do not report to the correct reporting agency for any charges under $50.00.We do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing.   Sincerely,   [redacted]
 
[redacted] Billing Center Quality Specialist

Item # 1:  Mr. [redacted] stated his credit card was charged $497.52 on July 10th, 2015 for the rental of his CPAP machine because Apria [redacted]care did not have the correct insurance on file. He stated he was not aware that he was to notify Apria if his insurance changed.   RESPONSE: We...

have reviewed Mr. [redacted] account and confirmed that he received his CPAP unit on August 1, 2014 and at this time he signed our Sales, Service and Rental Agreement authorizing his credit card to be placed on file to be charged for any services not covered by the insurance. We billed Mr. [redacted] insurance [redacted] for the monthly rental of the CPAP unit from August 1, 2014 through December 4, 2014 and they paid his claims at 80% and his credit card was charged a 20% copay of $17.90. We continued to bill [redacted] insurance for the monthly rental for January 4, 2015 through June 4, 2015 and claims were denied as no coverage; therefore Mr. [redacted]’s credit card was charged the entire monthly rental of $72.67.   We received Mr. [redacted] updated insurance [redacted] on June 23, 2015 and have billed for July 4, 2015 monthly rental of the CPAP unit. At this time we are currently working with [redacted] to obtain an authorization to cover services for January 2015 through June 2015 for their portion of the monthly rental for the CPAP unit and once claims processing is complete we will then confirm if a refund it due and if so the exact amount. Under the new insurance plan agreement with [redacted] Mr. [redacted] CPAP unit will continue to rent for eleven months and will then convert to a purchase in which he will then own the equipment. We do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing.   Sincerely,   [redacted]
 
[redacted] Billing Center Quality Specialist

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Regards,[redacted] I just spoke to Dr. [redacted]'s Office and on June 30th, at Apria's request, they faxed a Sleep Therapy Order Form.  Then in August Apria contacted Dr. [redacted]'s office that they still needed the Sleep Therapy For.  Again Dr. [redacted]'s office faxed it on August 10th.  Dr. [redacted]'s Office is getting very frustrated with Apria too.  There has been a big chenge with Apria in the last few years.  The customer service seems to have gone out the window and this isn't the first time they have lost paperwork.  I am in the process of transferring over to another healthcare facility that will provide the CPAP and accessories.
 
thank you.
 
Sincerely,
 
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
As mentioned in the original complaint, I informed the company Apria of the insurance change in November 2012. They apparently do not have that on record, but refuse or are unable to go back and listen to the archived phone records of the conversation I had with Apria representatives informing them of such change being made. So this matter has become a "she said/they said." Again, if I had been informed they failed to update the change in their system and consequently, were still billing my previous insurance Blue Shield, in a timely matter (not seven months later) this would not have become an issue.
Regards,
[redacted]

We have reviewed patient account and confirmed that she made a payment of $44.95 and the payment posted to our system on July 21st, 2016. At the time patient spoke to our billing representatives the payment had not posted to her account and was still in pending status. Therefore they informed her...

that once the payment posted they will provide her the information in order for her to submit for reimbursement. I have created a detailed itemized statement of the payment made by patient and how it was applied and sent the information to the address we have on file. We do apologize for the miscommunication as our goal is to ensure customer satisfaction as well as accurate billing.

We have confirmed that the patient was billed for supplies received January 26, 2016. He was enrolled in our opt in program to receive supplies automatically when eligible based on his insurance. The claim was denied as his insurance had termed December 31, 2015 and the account was changed to...

self-pay. We spoke with the patient on April 22, 2016 to obtain new insurance, he stated he would call back with the information. Apria healthcare called several times afterward and left messages with no response. The balance was placed with an outside collections agency October 30, 2016 due to non-payment.   The patient was previously in collections for 2014 balance, in which, he was advised that his credit card on file was inactive. We spoke with the patient May 12, 2017 when he called regarding collection calls and indicated he no longer wanted to use Apria Healthcare and wanted to return the supplies. He was advised that supplies could not be returned due to our thirty-day return policy. The patient is responsible for the balance generated regardless of still being a customer as he received supplies, never updated insurance, or provided credit card for payment. We believe all appropriate steps have been taken and we billed the patient correctly.   Sincerely,  Apria Healthcare, LLC

8/12/2016Revdex.com San Diego, CA Attn: [redacted]  Dispute and Information Analyst Lead [redacted]Re:  Apria Healthcare LLC:  [redacted]Revdex.com Complaint ID#: [redacted]Dear [redacted]: This letter is in response to the complaint referenced above submitted to the Revdex.com.  We apologize for any miscommunication on our part that may have resulted in this concern. Below is a brief description of the concern matter and our response.   Concern:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Im sorry, I did not put a response to the original message from apria...I do not accept this...if they will look further, the machine left was paid in full by medicare on [redacted] behalf and therefore, should be returned to him.  Now he cannot get a new machine for 5 years without paying out of pocket himself. He is on disability and in no way can afford to do this...he is in dire need of this machine since he has terrible sleep apnia...this is a terrible situation for [redacted] to be in and terrible for me as his mother to see him suffer like this for no apparent reason.  Thank youResponse: We would like to apologize again for the level of customer service you recently experienced. We have confirmed that due to the continued concerns expressed, Apria has provided a working Cpap machine and mask. Also, due to the [redacted] Bidding guidelines, patient will have to obtain additional supplies from a new supplier. We greatly appreciate you for taking the time to bring your concerns to our attention. We welcome all patient feedback as this provides us with a valuable insight into our services from the patient’s perspective which allows us to make service improvements, as it has done in this case.Sincerely, Apria Healthcare LLC

We would like to apologize for the level of customer service you recently experienced. After a review of our records, we confirmed with our Automated Outbound Management Department that you have been removed from the auto-dialer, and you should not receive any future calls.   We greatly...

appreciate you for taking the time to bring your concerns to our attention. We welcome all patient feedback as this provides us with a valuable insight into our services from the patient’s perspective which allows us to make service improvements, as it has done in this case.   Sincerely,   Apria Healthcare LLC

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]