BJC Healthcare

I would give 0 stars if I could! BJC Medical is a Preferred Provider, when my Dr's office would not see me in person for sinus infection due to covid, they suggest virtual. At no time did anyone say virtual was NOT a preferred provider. The greed and underhanded corporate healthcare needs to stop, I am soaked for an additional109.00 over my co-pay. Love my Dr. but will be switching to a non corporate Dr. When I have no choice but virtual because of covid, that is taking advantage of patients!

I have Medicare and Transamerica as secondary yet this year I continuously get sent bills my secondary will pay if submitted correctly. Two previous years I had no problems but this year has been a nightmare trying to get them to get right paper sent to my secondary. I refuse to pay the bills till both insurances deny which they have never done after deductibles are paid. One accounting person told me I needed to find the fax number for my secondary insurance as she was doing it as a "favor" for me! Like is this not her job?

A collector called me today the number showed up as spam risk and she asked me for my DOB on an out ound call. You called me and I do not know who you are so not giving that out. Agent screamed at me and HU. All she had to do was say NP here is our return number as for me Maria and I would have done that. Still waiting on a manager to call me back. I have been in upper collections management for 22 years. Very unacceptable agents like Maria give collections a bad name.

I have been trying to resolve these errors on my credit report for over 120 days now. I have disputed these errors with each of you directly to only have the accounts verified without any real investigation. As I stated in my previous 4 letters how WAS my account verified? You’ve all insisted that the accounts were indeed verified with their client S E Emergency Phys Memphis. I have contacted S E Emergency Phys Memphis about these so called debts at both listed locations with certified delivery in which I have provided copies. They have not responded to any of my letters it has been over 2 months. So how can they ignore me for 2 months yet verify with all you guys in less than 3 weeks? I believe that you are just taking the word of a A.R.S than rather to Really looking into the situation properly. I have also enclosed a detailed report of copies of all communications trying to fix these errors. These accounts cannot be validated or verified from the so called source they need to be removed immediately from my credit report.

I was a patient at the Barnes Jewish Rehab hospital in St. Peters four months ago and I was to get a wheelchair. I was measured for the wheelchair, but sent home with a loaner. They told me that the doctor filled the paperwork out incorrectly. I have called the case manager, ***, several times. She has given me different stories, that she would handle it or that she would make a call. Nothing has changed. It is authorized by Medicare and I haven't heard a word from them either.

I was supposed to have surgery tomorrow on my prostate. On Friday I found out it was cancelled. I have been trying to contact the doctor to talk about this, the secretary is so rude. I just want them to contact me to give me an idea of what is going on.

8/13/61 is my date of birth.

In October, 2019, I made an appointment with an ear doctor. While I was on the phone with them, I had informed them that I COULD NOT pay any out-of-pocket expenses other than the office co-pay. The receptionist assured me that she would verify that whatever the doctor would do WOULD be covered by the insurance company (***). On October 18th, I went to the doctor’s office, the doctor cleaned some wax out of my ear and that was that.

Then I started getting a bill from BJC for $141.00 for "ear wax removal" and, when I told them that I had been told that would be covered, they said that the insurance company considered it a "surgical procedure!" Even the doctor doesn't agree that it was, in any way, a "surgical procedure."

So, I called the insurance company, ***, and they said that was the way the doctor's office had billed it. They also told me that the doctor’s office couldn’t re-bill because the code they used is the only one they could use for that type of service.

I had explained to them that I told the receptionist that I did not want anything done that wasn’t covered, they checked their phone logs, and there had NOT been any calls from the doctor's office prior to, or after, the day of my visit to verify whether the procedure would be covered or not.

So, I called BJC back and spoke to a representative who agreed that I shouldn’t be held responsible for the bill and she was going to send it to someone to review for resolution. She told me that I would be contacted in a few weeks.

THEN, on 4/17, I got a letter from a collection agency saying they placed the account on collection! So, I called BJC back and spoke with another rep and she was going to call the collection agency and tell them to put the account on a 30-day hold so she could do some more investigating. She also sent me an application for financial assistance, which I filled out and sent back on 4/22/2020 which I haven’t heard the status of yet.

On April 20th, I reached out to my company’s Health Advocate for the *** and got them involved with this whole thing. On June 8th, I got a message from them telling me that the charges of $141 weren't covered because it was a plan exclusion.

I had an operative procedure medical and cosmetic on September 19, 2019 at Barnes Jewish West County. I was told at the time of my procedure my total out of pocket responsibility for the services supplied by the facility and anesthesiologists was $3,335.00. I gave them my credit card and was billed on my October statement the full amount. I have my statement for proof of payment.
In March 2020 I received a call stating I owed $2,848 because they erroneously refunded me that amount I paid in September. The problem is I never received any refund and asked for proof of the refund. The representative told me it was credited back to my card. I asked for proof of refund and she stated their records just showed a refund but did not have proof.
I stated I was not sending the more money until I had proof. Today, I have received bills from the hospital for more than $35,000 for services that were paid in full on the day of service in agreement for procedures performed.
I can not get this situation corrected since I received first bill two months ago for anesthesia and now a huge hospital bill I do not owe. I have tried through patient billing and they referred me today to a number that has been changed recently which I could not talk to somebody.

They are very pushy and rude! I need help finding another agency

This is the second Revdex.com complaint I had to file against Barnes Jewish in order to get business taken care of. Due the constant harassment and negligence of the Barnes Jewish staff, a total of four Federal Trade Commission complaints and now two Revdex.com Complaints.
I have also been in contact with the Compliance Manager for the collection’s company Barnes Jewish uses; whom is tired of answering the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau because of Barnes Jewish’s staff. I have requested MULTIPLE times for ALL outstanding bills to be consolidated into one account with a final bill given to me; this is what I thought the current bill that I am in possession of was. Apparently not, as I have received two collections notices for a bill I have never seen, and another for a bill that my insurance company has reprocessed (which took almost a year for them to do).
I have also requested on MULTIPLE occasions the billing details, based on THE DATE OF SERVICE. The last request was on September 19, 2019 in which the associate that I spoke with did not even understand the request. In fact, I had to give her an example scenario to get her to understand it. The only thing I have ever received was an invoice showing when the insurance processed the claim, which was irrelevant to what I had requested.
I have also sent in updated information FOUR MONTHS AGO to update my financial aid information; which was the basis of the previous Revdex.com complaint in March 2019. I provide check stub information to show that my income dropped over $1600 a month. I was told that it “has been received, but not reviewed” during my phone conversation on September 19th. So why has my financial aid information not been updated in four months? This was even discussed with the representative that Barnes Jewish assigned to me as part of the resolution from the Revdex.com complaint.

So they sent me two statements and sent my bill to collections without sending me a notice. I called they couldn’t give me any info on when they sent out information. The lady I spoke with also stated I should have gotten a letter but they never sent me one. I asked her for dates she couldn’t provide them.

I went in for an appointment with my doctor on 5/22/2019. The office visit was $192 and I need the code on it for what they charged for. I need a copy of the regular bill, a copy of the payments from Medicaid, my insurance and from me and a copy showing a $0 balance. I have been requesting this bill since 7/20/19. I have made five requests and they still haven't sent anything. Every time I speak to them and they tell me I will receive. I don't know how much clearer I can be with my request. They sent one receipt with my total payments. I can't use it because it doesn't show what it was paid for. I am trying to get reimbursed. The first check went through on 6/25 and the second check on 8/2.

I'm writing this to you with hopes that you can help me from the continued harassment about a bill BJC HealthCare, St. Louis, MO keeps sending me about a charge stemming back from January 10, 2018 that I do not owe.

I received a bill from BJC HealthCare *** in May 2019 for an office visit to *** for $186.00 dated January 10, 2018. On May 30, 2019, I called the BJC HealthCare Customer Service and talked with ***. She told me the bill had been submitted to *** first and then to Medicare second. *** is my secondary insurance, so of course they wouldn't pay if Medicare had not paid. *** said to just disregard the bill. BJC was to resubmit the January 10, 2018 bill to Medicare, but since it was so old, she said that Medicare would probably not pay it and I wouldn't be responsible for paying $186.00. Months later, I received notification from Medicare Part B that they would not pay claim *** as the time limit for filing the claim had expired, therefore appeal rights were not applicable for this claim and I would not be charged.

Barnes Jewish has previously sent me to collections regarding a separate bill that they egregiously mishandled last year. Which I submitted to the Revdex.com for resolution. This is another case of Barnes Jewish not having adequate control of their systems or customer service capabilities to provide a service. Both instances revolved around their online bill pay service which they fail to monitor and control. My family has experienced a number of instances where Barnes is seemingly making money disappear and then claiming that I failed to pay regardless of physical records from my bank existing where Barnes accepted the money from my account.

4/1/19: Paid balance stated on bill for acct, $110

4/3: $110 was removed from checking account

4/19: Received a bill for acct for $110. Called regarding this bill, was given (incorrect) email address to forward our confirmation email. I was told I would receive communication from supervisor, no communication ever came.

5/2: Called to check on progress as I had received no communication on the matter. I spoke to *** and was given a correct email address. Forwarded confirmation email. I was told I would receive communication from supervisor, no communication ever came.

5/3: Called to check on progress, spoke with unknown rep and was told the account balance was $25. I was transferred to ***. I asked if a Revdex.com report was necessary, was assured it was not and she would get rid of the $25 balance and my account would be closed.

5/11: Received a bill for acct for $110

5/13: Spoke to *** who transferred me to supervisor, ***. *** again assured that a Revdex.com report was not necessary and he was closing the account then. I was assured that the account would be closed.

5/14: Called to check progress, spoke to *** who told me the account closure was processing and would be officially closed by end of day 5/15.

6/16: Called to check progress, spoke to ***. *** was unable to locate the account and told me he would call me back in 24 hours. No one ever called.

6/21: I received a bill from *** for a debt of $110. Called Barnes and spoke to supervisor, ***. *** showed a balance of $25 owed, claiming that when I had originally been billed $110 my actual balance was $135. I conceded to pay $25 to close the account and be rid of this frustration. *** assured me that he would cancel the *** account.

6/22: I mailed a debt validity dispute to *** in an effort to cover all bases and ensure my credit will not be damaged by further failures on Barnes Billing Department’s ability to do as promised.

6/24: I rcvd a call from Barnes "business office" claiming that no payment has been made to account #2 for June. Payment was made on 5/31 to Barnes online electronic bill pay for 120.86 and funds removed from my account on 6/3.

First I do want to say the staff was friendly during my visit and that is appreciated. My issue is I received a bill today from my initial visit on 05/15/2019, and my echocardiogram from 05/17/2019. I must say I was surprised being charged 344.00 to meet with a doctor for 15 minutes. Unfortunately, I make to much to get assistance but am poor enough to live paycheck to paycheck. Next, my echocardiogram was 183.00, which I feel was a fair price even though it only took 10-20 minutes. My issue with this is no one ever called to give me my results. I assumed it was okay due to the lack of a call. Yet I am sure everyone would agree that no matter what area of service provided, it is not okay to charge for a service and not follow through. I do not feel a bill that I will have to make monthly payments on is appropriate when the service that put me in this debt was never complete.

Device check was supposed to be done at Cardiology offices at no charge to me by device maker ***. When I arrived, *** was not there, and device was checked by in-house personnel for which I received a bill for 193.78. This is a classic bait and switch.

In December 2018, I attended to the BJC HealthCare emergency in Saint Peters. I was billed for the service dated 01.24.2019 in the amount of $110.80 and paid on 02.05.2019. Today, April 2, 2019 I was surprised to receive a notice from *** collecting $115.80 for services that I never received a bill for nor was I contacted about being billed twice for attending to the BJC emergency room. I am requesting an explanation for being billed twice and why no one from the billing department following up with me on this error.

BJC Healthcare accepted partial payment of my bill, then mailed notices to an address I do not live at. On Sept 4, 2017 I received a surgery at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis, MO. I established a payment program of $25.00 per month. After several payments I was rendered homeless and called to change my contact information. I also advised that I could not pay the $25.00 per month anymore and a representative advised me to send what I could. We agreed that I would send $5.00 per month. I sent a check and it was cashed. I am now being told to send $25.00 a month again and that being homeless is unacceptable for a home location by Hugh at a company that now identifies itself as Medical Data Systems located at 1374 S. Babcock St., Melborne, FL 32901. Leighkin from the same company advised me that MDS is in fact an extension of BJC's business office on 4-1-2019 at 1138 hours.

I would like to start off by stating that I have had multiple issues with this organization in the last two years. It has gotten to the point to where my insurance company has gotten involved and investigated claims, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Federal Trade Commission have become involved in investigating this organization as well.
Late June 2018 I received a bill for services in April 2018. I am not contesting that portion. I did however receive a bill for services in July 2017 (nearly a full year later) that were covered 100% under my insurance policy, and were billed to me in error. I wrote three letters (one of them certified) to the address provided on the billing statement; requesting financial assistance for the April 2018 billing portion, and requesting reprocessing for the July 2017 billing error.
In the letters I also included my mailing address, phone number, and email address for correspondence. Since I have NEVER received a response through any of those means, it is currently a refusal of service. At the base of the matter; some employee is responsible for retrieving the mail from the mail box or drawer, some employee is responsible for OPENING the letters to process the contents, therefor some employee should have notified the appropriate personnel as to the requests. As I stated, this is refusal of service, due to negligence of YOUR employees.
In the meantime, I had been contacted by my case manager with my insurance company mid-September 2018 (four months after first contact from your organization). She was the one who researched the billing error to let me know the claim was covered in full through my policy from July 2017, and stated I needed to reach out to your organization to notify YOU of YOUR error. At the end of the conversation, since I had not received any correspondence in regards to any of the inquiries; she reached out to your billing department to correct the issue.
We also have further problems with the services provide in July 2017. These were for lab services with your transplant program, which were 100% covered by my insurance policy. September 2017 I receive a call from my case manager with my insurance company, stating that I was soon to be ejected from YOUR program due to “noncompliance” and that I needed to follow up with her contact in YOUR office to correct the error. Following up with a phone call to your representative, she made slanderous statements about me (to me), refused to explain statements she had made when questioned, and went as far as to say “I’m not going to answer that” when asked specific questions about my case. She was excessively rude and disrespectful to me on the phone, to the point where I had to end the conversation.
The point comes down to; according to YOUR representative I never performed the labs, so why would I be billed for them? Did you file a fraudulent insurance claim for services never performed? The facts actually point to your representative telling me information about me that was false (slander), but providing a liable statement to my insurance company which endangered me from losing my coverage for these services in the future. It was also such a gross error, that it took ALMOST A YEAR to find out that your organization billed it in error.
At this point it is October 2018 and we have corrected the billing error from July 2017, but I still have not received any correspondence about the bill from April 2018. I had an outpatient surgery late October 2018, which I received a bill for during the holidays in December 2018. The bill included the April 2018 statement as well, the July 2017 statement had been removed. I again sent a written correspondence requesting financial assistance. I received a phone call from a male representative, just to inform me that I had a billing statement sent to me. I spoke with him about the situation, and let him know that I have yet to receive the financial assistance information. He was very understanding, and gave me a local number to speak with someone about not getting the information I requested.
On December 26, 2018 I spoke with a representative named ***. She was very argumentative and disrespectful on the phone (which is a trend with your organization), but I requested the forms for financial assistance as well as a UB04 form for my outpatient surgery. I had never received either document. I called again at the end of January, and spoke with a very helpful representative. I let her know I did not receive the financial assistance forms, she noted that they had been sent, but she would send them again. Those forms were received late evening February 8, 2019. I again asked about the UB04 form for my outpatient surgery, she informed me that the form could not be released, and could not give me a reason why.
I received a call on February 11, 2019 from an arrogant representative named Tia. I informed her that I had asked for financial assistance TWICE verbally (not counting the four times in writing), just received the forms a few days prior and need time to fill them out plus get the information requested in the form (tax information, pay stubs, etc). She informed me that she was not going to hold the account; even though I had requested financial assistance SIX WEEKS prior to the phone call with her, the statement in the forms that I had to return them WITHIN thirty days, and that it could take up to thirty days to process. As of the time of this complaint, I have not received any other information (besides a bill with no reflection of assistance). The forms were mailed on February 14, 2019 certified and trackable.
I do want to make a side note as to why all the requests I have made were in writing. It goes back to verbal harassment from a doctor in May 2017 that was escalated to *** Claims and Fraud department after it was “investigated” by your organization. Your agents in the billing and claims department we SO RUDE and uncooperative to my case worker with ***, that he could no longer speak with your representatives. He stated he would send all other information by letter, recommended that any further communications I had be in writing so I had a paper trail, and that I could CC my insurance company in. Seeing how my insurance company is the primary payer on my account (paying upwards of 80%), why are your representatives being so uncooperative? Due to the actions of your representatives, that account has a complaint registered with the Federal Trade Commission.

I received the enclosed bill on Friday, February 22, 2019 stating I owe $194.00. I called the Rehabilitation Institute of St. Louis and told them I paid what I owed in 2016. They told me that was incorrect. Before I took the treatment, they said I was covered.