Butte Dental Care

The purpose of this letter is to respond to the complaint filed on 12/29/We have read our patients complaint in its entirety and we would like to take this time to try and resolve any misunderstandings.Our patient was seen in our office for a orthodontic consultation in During this visit our patient, although years of age at the time, brought his mother in with him for his orthodontic consultationThe treatment plan and costs were discussed with our patient and his motherOur patient and his mother were aware that the orthodontic treatment was expected to take 18-months to complete but it was not to exceed monthsOur patient’s mother presented to our office with our patient and was seated in his room during the first few orthodontic appointments and she also signed all consents and proposed treatment plan (we have enclosed copies for your records) for our patient which led us to believe we were able to discuss our patient’s treatment with herOur office began orthodontic treatment on our patient immediately following his consultation in Our patient’s mother informed us that she would need to submit a health care claim form to her insurance so they would issue a check for our patients estimated portion of his orthodontic treatmentWe have attached a copy of the health care claim form which is dated 01/15/and a copy of our patient’s account history showing we received the payment for his portion of his orthodontic treatment on 01/13/We have also attached a photograph dated 10/16/which shows our patient fully commenced in his orthodontic treatment several months prior to his payment which proves his initial statement in his complaint: “Dr [redacted] would not start any orthodontic treatment until all orthodontic treatment was all paid in full” to be completely falseDuring our patient’s course of treatment he missed several appointmentsOur patient was informed on multiple documented occasions that there is a charge for missed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment may result in additional feesAlthough patient was warned about additional charges he still continued to miss his appointments frequentlyOur office did inform our patient’s mother of his missed appointment as our patient and his family have been valued patients of record for several years and we did not want to have to enforce our office policies and cause additional costs for our patientOur cancellation policy is posted in our waiting room, on our appointment reminder cards and in the new patient paper work which is signed by our patientsWe have attached copies of our posted cancellation policies and our office policy form signed by our patient’s motherOur patient still chose to miss his appointments which left us with no choice but to enforce our office policiesOn December 9, our patient presented to our office for a routine orthodontic appointmentAt this time he informed our office that he would like his brackets removedWe informed our patient that he had a balance unpaid by his insurance company for his orthodontic treatment and additional incurred charges due to failed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment as patient is months passed his expected 18-month planThe penalty for our patient’s multiple missed appointments and the remaining unpaid insurance balance would exceed $2,As mentioned above, our patient has been a valued patient for many yearsWe felt it would be fair to offer our patient a flat fee of $and consider his balance paid in fullWhen our patient was given the $offer his response was one that he always gave, “I have to ask my mom.” Patient called his mother and his mother was very upsetOur patient’s mother immediately contacted our office and shouted profanities, threatened with lawsuits and also threatened to bash our office on Facebook because “they have many friends between her husband and herself.” Our patient was informed of his mother’s phone call and was given the option to return to have his brackets removed when he was ready to pay the $offer he was givenOur patient returned a few days later with his motherOur patient’s mother asked to speak to me, however, I was with patient’s as our office is a very busy practice as we see roughly patient’s a dayI was aware that our patient’s mother was upset and I did not want our other patient’s to have to be subjected to any kind of profanities or unacceptable behaviorI asked the front office to inform our patient and his mother that I will not be able to speak with them at this timeOur patient’s mother was not happy with the answer they were given and handed my front office staff multiple documents and threatened to file a claim with your office, file a claim with the dental board, contact [redacted] with channel news, and even handed us her mother’s business card and threatened to have our office audited by her mother who works for the State of CaliforniaWe have enclosed copies of all the explanation of benefits from our patient’s insurance company, signed estimated treatment plan, and contractsWe understand that our patient feels his account is paid in full as they paid their estimated portionIt is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only and estimation portionIt is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only an estimateWhen an insurance company does not pay the full estimated portion the remaining balance unfortunately becomes the patient’s responsibilityIt is also stated on our orthodontic contract that the full amount is due before removal of the orthodontic appliances, no matter what the reason to discontinue treatmentWe assure you that there is absolutely no fraudulent billing or overcharging done in our officeWe comply with all laws and regulationsRecording someone without their consent or knowledge as out patient’s admittedly did however is against the law and is a crime pursuant to penal code and is punishable by imprisonment and fines of up to $We are very saddened that our patient feels he is being overcharged and that his teeth are being held for ransomWe feel that our offer of $as payment in full is a very fair offerIf our patient would like to bring his account up to date and have his braces removed we would be more than happy to provide this service for himHe is welcome to contact our office to schedule an appointment at his convenience.We thank you for all your time and consideration in regards to this matterShould you have any questions please feel free to contact our office.Sincerely, [redacted] , D.D.S

The purpose of this letter is to respond to the complaint filed on 12/29/2015. We have read our patients complaint in its entirety and we would like to take this time to try and resolve any misunderstandings.Our patient was seen in our office for a orthodontic consultation in 2012. During this visit...

our patient, although 18 years of age at the time, brought his mother in with him for his orthodontic consultation. The treatment plan and costs were discussed with our patient and his mother. Our patient and his mother were aware that the orthodontic treatment was expected to take 18-24 months to complete but it was not to exceed 24 months. Our patient’s mother presented to our office with our patient and was seated in his room during the first few orthodontic appointments and she also signed all consents and proposed treatment plan (we have enclosed copies for your records) for our patient which led us to believe we were able to discuss our patient’s treatment with her. Our office began orthodontic treatment on our patient immediately following his consultation in 2012. Our patient’s mother informed us that she would need to submit a health care claim form to her insurance so they would issue a check for our patients estimated portion of his orthodontic treatment. We have attached a copy of the health care claim form which is dated 01/15/2013 and a copy of our patient’s account history showing we received the payment for his portion of his orthodontic treatment on 01/13/2013. We have also attached a photograph dated 10/16/2012 which shows our patient fully commenced in his orthodontic treatment several months prior to his payment which proves his initial statement in his complaint: “Dr. [redacted] would not start any orthodontic treatment until all orthodontic treatment was all paid in full” to be completely false. During our patient’s course of treatment he missed several appointments. Our patient was informed on multiple documented occasions that there is a charge for missed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment may result in additional fees. Although patient was warned about additional charges he still continued to miss his appointments frequently. Our office did inform our patient’s mother of his missed appointment as our patient and his family have been valued patients of record for several years and we did not want to have to enforce our office policies and cause additional costs for our patient. Our cancellation policy is posted in our waiting room, on our appointment reminder cards and in the new patient paper work which is signed by our patients. We have attached copies of our posted cancellation policies and our office policy form signed by our patient’s mother. Our patient still chose to miss his appointments which left us with no choice but to enforce our office policies. On December 9, 2015 our patient presented to our office for a routine orthodontic appointment. At this time he informed our office that he would like his brackets removed. We informed our patient that he had a balance unpaid by his insurance company for his orthodontic treatment and additional incurred charges due to failed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment as patient is 20 months passed his expected 18-24 month plan. The penalty for our patient’s multiple missed appointments and the remaining unpaid insurance balance would exceed $2,000. As mentioned above, our patient has been a valued patient for many years. We felt it would be fair to offer our patient a flat fee of $600 and consider his balance paid in full. When our patient was given the $600 offer his response was one that he always gave, “I have to ask my mom.” Patient called his mother and his mother was very upset. Our patient’s mother immediately contacted our office and shouted profanities, threatened with lawsuits and also threatened to bash our office on Facebook because “they have many friends between her husband and herself.” Our patient was informed of his mother’s phone call and was given the option to return to have his brackets removed when he was ready to pay the $600 offer he was given. Our patient returned a few days later with his mother. Our patient’s mother asked to speak to me, however, I was with patient’s as our office is a very busy practice as we see roughly 35 patient’s a day. I was aware that our patient’s mother was upset and I did not want our other patient’s to have to be subjected to any kind of profanities or unacceptable behavior. I asked the front office to inform our patient and his mother that I will not be able to speak with them at this time. Our patient’s mother was not happy with the answer they were given and handed my front office staff multiple documents and threatened to file a claim with your office, file a claim with the dental board, contact [redacted] with channel 13 news, and even handed us her mother’s business card and threatened to have our office audited by her mother who works for the State of California. We have enclosed copies of all the explanation of benefits from our patient’s insurance company, signed estimated treatment plan, and contracts. We understand that our patient feels his account is paid in full as they paid their estimated portion. It is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only and estimation portion. It is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only an estimate. When an insurance company does not pay the full estimated portion the remaining balance unfortunately becomes the patient’s responsibility. It is also stated on our orthodontic contract that the full amount is due before removal of the orthodontic appliances, no matter what the reason to discontinue treatment. We assure you that there is absolutely no fraudulent billing or overcharging done in our office. We comply with all laws and regulations. Recording someone without their consent or knowledge as out patient’s admittedly did however is against the law and is a crime pursuant to penal code 637.2 and is punishable by imprisonment and fines of up to $5000.00. We are very saddened that our patient feels he is being overcharged and that his teeth are being held for ransom. We feel that our offer of $600 as payment in full is a very fair offer. If our patient would like to bring his account up to date and have his braces removed we would be more than happy to provide this service for him. He is welcome to contact our office to schedule an appointment at his convenience.We thank you for all your time and consideration in regards to this matter. Should you have any questions please feel free to contact our office.Sincerely,[redacted], D.D.S

Review: Dr. [redacted] would not start any Orthodontic treatment until all Orthodontic treatment was all paid in full. I was already 18 at the time of Orthodontic treatment. Dr. [redacted] without my consent persistently and consistently continued to discuss my treatment(s) with my mother and continued to tell her how disgusted he was with me needing to cancel appointments due to my work schedule and then reschedule them. At one point Dr. [redacted]n told my mother, she needed to discipline me and make me show up on schedule. I had asked politely on several occasions to please not discuss his disgust toward me with my mother, that it was inappropriate, unprofessional and unbecoming of a provider, although he continued to do so. On several different occasions I asked Dr. [redacted], to please just remove my braces. Dr. [redacted] refused to remove them every time I requested that he do so, stating that it is his reputation if he removes them.

On December 9, 2015, I was at Dr. [redacted]’s office for an appointment and Dr. [redacted] refused to continue any further treatment on my teeth until I paid a balance of $600.00. As stated above, my orthodontic treatment was paid in full prior to treatment being started. I asked, “How is this fair or possible when my treatment was paid in full? I reminded Dr. [redacted] that I had asked him to remove the braces on several occasions to which he refused.” On December 16, 2015, my mother and I went into Dr. [redacted]’s office to speak with him, to which the receptionist informed him of. The receptionist returned stating he did not want to speak to me, and that we could speak with her. At that point my mother recorded the conversation, in which the receptionist stated that yes my balance was PAID IN FULL. At this point it seems Dr. [redacted] is holding my teeth for ransom.

I was told by office staff that no longer work there, that Dr. [redacted] has overcharged and committed fraudulent billing in the past and that she is sure he continues to do so. I am a patient, so I do not know if that is a true statement, but it should warrant to be looked into further.Desired Settlement: I just want my braces removed and my retainer at no additional charge. This Orthodontic treatment and retainer is the services that were paid for in full. I just want those services to be followed through with, without holding my teeth for ransom for a monetary amount that has been paid.

Business

Response:

The purpose of this letter is to respond to the complaint filed on 12/29/2015. We have read our patients complaint in its entirety and we would like to take this time to try and resolve any misunderstandings.Our patient was seen in our office for a orthodontic consultation in 2012. During this visit our patient, although 18 years of age at the time, brought his mother in with him for his orthodontic consultation. The treatment plan and costs were discussed with our patient and his mother. Our patient and his mother were aware that the orthodontic treatment was expected to take 18-24 months to complete but it was not to exceed 24 months. Our patient’s mother presented to our office with our patient and was seated in his room during the first few orthodontic appointments and she also signed all consents and proposed treatment plan (we have enclosed copies for your records) for our patient which led us to believe we were able to discuss our patient’s treatment with her. Our office began orthodontic treatment on our patient immediately following his consultation in 2012. Our patient’s mother informed us that she would need to submit a health care claim form to her insurance so they would issue a check for our patients estimated portion of his orthodontic treatment. We have attached a copy of the health care claim form which is dated 01/15/2013 and a copy of our patient’s account history showing we received the payment for his portion of his orthodontic treatment on 01/13/2013. We have also attached a photograph dated 10/16/2012 which shows our patient fully commenced in his orthodontic treatment several months prior to his payment which proves his initial statement in his complaint: “Dr. [redacted] would not start any orthodontic treatment until all orthodontic treatment was all paid in full” to be completely false. During our patient’s course of treatment he missed several appointments. Our patient was informed on multiple documented occasions that there is a charge for missed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment may result in additional fees. Although patient was warned about additional charges he still continued to miss his appointments frequently. Our office did inform our patient’s mother of his missed appointment as our patient and his family have been valued patients of record for several years and we did not want to have to enforce our office policies and cause additional costs for our patient. Our cancellation policy is posted in our waiting room, on our appointment reminder cards and in the new patient paper work which is signed by our patients. We have attached copies of our posted cancellation policies and our office policy form signed by our patient’s mother. Our patient still chose to miss his appointments which left us with no choice but to enforce our office policies. On December 9, 2015 our patient presented to our office for a routine orthodontic appointment. At this time he informed our office that he would like his brackets removed. We informed our patient that he had a balance unpaid by his insurance company for his orthodontic treatment and additional incurred charges due to failed appointments and prolonged orthodontic treatment as patient is 20 months passed his expected 18-24 month plan. The penalty for our patient’s multiple missed appointments and the remaining unpaid insurance balance would exceed $2,000. As mentioned above, our patient has been a valued patient for many years. We felt it would be fair to offer our patient a flat fee of $600 and consider his balance paid in full. When our patient was given the $600 offer his response was one that he always gave, “I have to ask my mom.” Patient called his mother and his mother was very upset. Our patient’s mother immediately contacted our office and shouted profanities, threatened with lawsuits and also threatened to bash our office on Facebook because “they have many friends between her husband and herself.” Our patient was informed of his mother’s phone call and was given the option to return to have his brackets removed when he was ready to pay the $600 offer he was given. Our patient returned a few days later with his mother. Our patient’s mother asked to speak to me, however, I was with patient’s as our office is a very busy practice as we see roughly 35 patient’s a day. I was aware that our patient’s mother was upset and I did not want our other patient’s to have to be subjected to any kind of profanities or unacceptable behavior. I asked the front office to inform our patient and his mother that I will not be able to speak with them at this time. Our patient’s mother was not happy with the answer they were given and handed my front office staff multiple documents and threatened to file a claim with your office, file a claim with the dental board, contact [redacted] with channel 13 news, and even handed us her mother’s business card and threatened to have our office audited by her mother who works for the State of California. We have enclosed copies of all the explanation of benefits from our patient’s insurance company, signed estimated treatment plan, and contracts. We understand that our patient feels his account is paid in full as they paid their estimated portion. It is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only and estimation portion. It is stated on the signed treatment plan that the insurance coverage is only an estimate. When an insurance company does not pay the full estimated portion the remaining balance unfortunately becomes the patient’s responsibility. It is also stated on our orthodontic contract that the full amount is due before removal of the orthodontic appliances, no matter what the reason to discontinue treatment. We assure you that there is absolutely no fraudulent billing or overcharging done in our office. We comply with all laws and regulations. Recording someone without their consent or knowledge as out patient’s admittedly did however is against the law and is a crime pursuant to penal code 637.2 and is punishable by imprisonment and fines of up to $5000.00. We are very saddened that our patient feels he is being overcharged and that his teeth are being held for ransom. We feel that our offer of $600 as payment in full is a very fair offer. If our patient would like to bring his account up to date and have his braces removed we would be more than happy to provide this service for him. He is welcome to contact our office to schedule an appointment at his convenience.We thank you for all your time and consideration in regards to this matter. Should you have any questions please feel free to contact our office.Sincerely,[redacted], D.D.S