Drs. Schelkun & Kienle Associates of Bucks County, P.C.

[redacted] [redacted] I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me Thank you - it's acceptable.It's worthwhile to note that I mentioned in my complaint that I'm unable to call and hang around on the phone during the day because I'm constantly busy and when I do make calls, it's always in the bathroom because the office is open and I don't want to have to sit around just talking about my private information / issues However, even that workaround is limited Furthermore, if I do make calls and hang around on the phone, my boss / supervisors will resort to being political, expecting the office policy manual to be followed, and try to use the "young people have no regard for the rules" routine No matter how good you are at your job, they always want absolute control, even over your behavior and actions I have no control over my supervisors and/or their attitudes, or office/space planning, except to look elsewhere for another job, which I've done and since have moved onHowever, it's still the same attitude, no matter where I go because the people that's in charge now have certain negative attitudes about anyone younger than them I left a message at the only time I was able and am at a severe disadvantage during working hours when it comes to making calls, as you've just read I left the message after I received the first bill, so the situation should've been resolved or looked into at that point, rather than the steady flow of bills, which led to my filing of this complaint [redacted]

We would like to thank you for allowing me to reply to the patient’s complaintThe following is our version of the issueWe did verify the patient’s insurance benefits prior to the patient coming in for his appointmentWhen we called his insurance carrier and were told that he would owe nothing for his evaluationIn addition, when it was discovered that we needed to take an x-ray for him, we called his insurance carrier (as required by them) to get an authorization number and were again told that he had no co-pay for the x-rayOnly after we billed his insurance carrier, the x-ray was denied and the patient was then billed for the appropriate amountWe are only as good as the information that we receive, and unfortunately this happens from time to time when the insurance carrier processes a claim differently from what we are told on the phone.Our office staff never states that there were “no fees for consultations”Our doctors do bill for their timeThe office staff may have told him that he didn’t owe anything for that day which is not the same as saying there is no feeFor the record, the patient had received four statements and we let him know in advance that failure to pay would result in us sending him to an outside collection agency via letter prior to sending his outstanding balance to collectionsAfter investigating the matter further, it was discovered that the insurance carrier actually denied the x-ray in error, and had the patient called our billing department during business hours and spoke with one of the associates when he started receiving bills, we would have been able to correct the issue months agoWe would like to state that his dental insurance requires us to send in written authorization prior to any procedures, and it typically takes up to weeks to hear back from themThis is why he was told so close to his scheduled surgical appointment how much was owed for his procedure, because we hadn’t received their determination yet This is his insurance carriers’ requirement, not ours; we are just abiding by the rules set forth by them in our contractWe truly apologize that the patient felt the way that he did about our officeWe do our best to be up-front with patients regarding their co-pays and fees and we would never intentionally mislead anyone regarding their payments dueWe feel like we could have resolved this matter if the patient had reached out to us directly in the first placeWe believe that for the most part this was a misunderstanding and lack of mutual communication between our office and the patientIn hopes to resolve this matter to the patient’s satisfaction, we have notified the collection agency that we are removing his account from their process and he will not have any negative impact on his credit ratingWe would also like him to know that we will continue to try and improve our billing policies and procedures going forwardThank you

We would like to thank
you for allowing me to reply to the patient’s complaint. The
following is our version of the issue. We did verify the patient’s
insurance benefits prior to the patient coming in for his
appointment. When we called his insurance carrier and were told that
he would owe...

nothing for his evaluation. In addition, when it was
discovered that we needed to take an x-ray for him, we called his
insurance carrier (as required by them) to get an authorization
number and were again told that he had no co-pay for the x-ray. Only
after we billed his insurance carrier, the x-ray was denied and the
patient was then billed for the appropriate amount. We are only as
good as the information that we receive, and unfortunately this
happens from time to time when the insurance carrier processes a
claim differently from what we are told on the phone.Our office staff never
states that there were “no fees for consultations”. Our doctors
do bill for their time. The office staff may have told him that he
didn’t owe anything for that day which is not the same as saying
there is no fee. For the record, the patient had received four
statements and we let him know in advance that failure to pay would
result in us sending him to an outside collection agency via letter
prior to sending his outstanding balance to collections. After investigating the
matter further, it was discovered that the insurance carrier actually
denied the x-ray in error, and had the patient called our billing
department during business hours and spoke with one of the associates
when he started receiving bills, we would have been able to correct
the issue months ago. We would like to state
that his dental insurance requires us to send in written
authorization prior to any procedures, and it typically takes up to 6
weeks to hear back from them. This is why he was told so close to
his scheduled surgical appointment how much was owed for his
procedure, because we hadn’t received their determination yet.
This is his insurance carriers’ requirement, not ours; we are just
abiding by the rules set forth by them in our contract. We truly apologize that
the patient felt the way that he did about our office. We do our
best to be up-front with patients regarding their co-pays and fees
and we would never intentionally mislead anyone regarding their
payments due. We feel like we could
have resolved this matter if the patient had reached out to us
directly in the first place. We believe that for the most part this
was a misunderstanding and lack of mutual communication between our
office and the patient. In hopes to resolve this
matter to the patient’s satisfaction, we have notified the
collection agency that we are removing his account from their process
and he will not have any negative impact on his credit rating. We
would also like him to know that we will continue to try and improve
our billing policies and procedures going forward. Thank you.

[redacted]
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  Thank you - it's acceptable.It's worthwhile to note that I mentioned in my complaint that I'm unable to call and hang around on the phone during the day because I'm constantly busy and when I do make calls, it's always in the bathroom because the office is open and I don't want to have to sit around just talking about my private information / issues.  However, even that workaround is limited.  Furthermore, if I do make calls and hang around on the phone, my boss / supervisors will resort to being political, expecting the office policy manual to be followed, and try to use the "young people have no regard for the rules" routine.  No matter how good you are at your job, they always want absolute control, even over your behavior and actions.   I have no control over my supervisors and/or their attitudes,  or office/space planning, except to look elsewhere for another job, which I've done and since have moved on. However, it's still the same attitude, no matter where I go because the people that's in charge now have certain negative attitudes about anyone younger than them.  I left a message at the only time I was able and am at a severe disadvantage during working hours when it comes to making calls, as you've just read.  I left the message after I received the first bill, so the situation should've been resolved or looked into at that point, rather than the steady flow of bills, which led to my filing of this complaint.    
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