Dr Gabriel Malouf DDS

Dear [redacted] , It is my pleasure to address your concerns I pride myself on providing excellent value and NOT pushing treatment My job is to tell you everything I see in an exam, and your decision whether you want to do some of it, all of it, or none of it If you felt pressured, that was certainly not my intent Second, I work hard to diagnose treatment early With laser detection and new digital x-rays I often find things I would have missed with older technology Smaller fillings cost less and last longer, but there are patients who prefer to postpone treatment Third, I encourage second opinions (though I ask my team to inform patients if there is a chance their benefit company may not pay, to avoid surprises at another office) It doesn’t make sense to discourage another opinion, and none of our team would ever knowingly do this Finally, I asked my financial team to look up your account We were a preferred provider for your dependents’ plan up until the most recent visit (when you were informed of that change) The fees you paid in past years, were set by your insurance company; I had simply agreed to their terms As my team informed you, fees are generally lower in central Idaho (where your dependents plan is based) than Western Washington—hopefully this will help you with future planning We always have courtesy discounts available for patients who are out of network My financial team can only post discount after receiving your payment portion on time and in full (after all Insurance processing is complete including any secondary insurance or 3rd party payers) Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions Sincerely, Gabriel M [redacted] DDS

Dear [redacted],
 
It is my pleasure to address your concerns.
 
I pride myself on providing excellent value and NOT pushing treatment.  My job is to tell you everything I see in an exam, and your decision whether you want to do some of it, all of it, or none of it.  If you...

felt pressured, that was certainly not my intent.
 
Second, I work hard to diagnose treatment early.  With laser detection and new digital x-rays I often find things I would have missed with older technology.  Smaller fillings cost less and last longer, but there are patients who prefer to postpone treatment.
 
Third, I encourage second opinions (though I ask my team to inform patients if there is a chance their benefit company may not pay, to avoid surprises at another office).  It doesn’t make sense to discourage another opinion, and none of our team would ever knowingly do this. 
 
Finally, I asked my financial team to look up your account. 
 
We were a preferred provider for your dependents’ plan up until the most recent visit (when you were informed of that change).  The fees you paid in past years, were set by your insurance company; I had simply agreed to their terms.  As my team informed you, fees are generally lower in central Idaho (where your dependents plan is based) than Western Washington—hopefully this will help you with future planning.
We always have courtesy discounts available for patients who are out of network.  My financial team can only post discount after receiving your payment portion on time and in full (after all Insurance processing is complete including any secondary insurance or 3rd party payers). 
 
Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions.
 
Sincerely,
 
 
Gabriel M[redacted] DDS