Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc.

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Incto respond to complaint ID ***We are sorry that the complainant experience did not meet expectationsIt is standard practice at Linder Psychiatric Group, and considered a good industry practice, to execute the initial psychiatric
evaluation over 2-sessionsThis is for the benefit of the patient, so that a comprehensive, thorough evaluation can take placeThis helps to ensure that patients receive the right diagnoses and subsequent treatment planThe patient was seen for this evaluation process on 4/23/13, 4/30/13, and 5/14/It does appear that the evaluation process was completed and that treatment was beginning to commence, per usualWhile it is extremely unfortunate that the clinician tendered resignation and left the practice, that is a circumstance that is beyond the control of Linder Psychiatric GroupThe patient received professional psychiatric services, from a psychiatristThere is no reason that the bill for said services should not be paid

I am rejecting this response because:The company in question is further denying the communications and attempt at communicating to solve this issueAt the time the appointment was schedule with the psychologist in question, it was noted on their own website that the doctor only specialized in family and marriage counseling, not in ADHD assessment and diagnosis which is contradictory in what I was toldFurthermore, my appointment was scheduled one (1) day before my son was to be seen by the psychologist not once was I told that a cancellation was implementedIf that requirement was discussed I absolutely would not have schedule an appointment the day before without doing my research on the psychologist to help with diagnosis and helping my child The atrempt to to reach out to my insurance was merely to see if they could discuss with the company the dissatisfaction with the lack of communication and to try and resolve the issueI have attached images of current dissatisfied reviews of the company All stemming from no communication to threatening letters of collections Furthermore, if a verbal contract was indeed forced by the business on the basis of a verbal hour clause, at the time thie appointment was made, Placer county did not invoke verbal agreements No hour cancellation was discussed, no calls afterwards were discussed, just statements with interest and threatening collection notes. I am am willing to negotiated paying 50% of the original fee in order for the business to receive compensation and for myself to no longer receive statements and threatening letters Please advise on an amicable solution

I am rejecting this response because:  the documentation provided does not show any approval to charge $214.00 for a no-show fee, which is more than double the rate of charges for any appointment across the previous 20 appointments.  The established rate of an appointment is $103.32.   The $103.32 was paid for the missed appointment to Linder.    Linder is attempting to bill $214.00,  an over charge of $110.68.   Please refund the $110.68 the form of a check within the next 10 business day.

This family scheduled an appointment with our group for their child.  The patient's mom was informed at the time of scheduling that there was a 72 business hour cancellation policy as documented at the time of scheduling.  The mom called the day before the appointment to cancel...

as documented in the record. The patient's mom actually did request to have the charges waived for missing an appointment and based on our documentation at the time, and the mom stated it was due to a family emergency, although we do not have written documentation from the mom on file, or anything indicating she provided documentation to support her family emergency, and therefore the charges were not waived.  Additionally, there was no mention of any issue regarding the provider until after the patient incurred charges.  The provider that was scheduled to see her child was a License  Family Therapist (specializing in seeing children), and has received numerous accolades from her patients regarding her care and is considered an excellent therapist.   So well trained that she was recruited to teach at a local college.  Her specialty sheet we have on file, as well as her credentials, clearly identifies that she is trained in working with patients with the challenges this child was scheduled for, so we are not sure where the mom is getting her information.  This mom also called her insurance as well and let them know that she was being charged for the missed appointment, unfortunately the charges fall on the patient as insurance does not cover missed appointment fees.

I am rejecting this response because:   Linder Psychiatric needs to provide documentation (with my signature) that shows extra must be paid for a missed appointment. The doctors office requires signatures for 'no show' fees under duress when a patient desperately needs care.   The 'no show' fees are more than 2x the rate when service is provided.   This is not an ethical business practice to charge more for a missed visit than the actual care would have cost.  The standard rate for service was clearly established across 20 previous visits.    No other business or medical office has ever charged more for a missed appointment than a regular visit.   Rental car companies don't do it.  Airlines don't do it.  Other doctor's offices don't do it.  Dentists don't do it.    It's time for this business to acknowledge their unethical practice of having those financially responsible sign a bunch of papers under duress, on behalf of patients, and then overcharging when no service was performed.    They need to STOP this business practice.   I am more than willing to pay the cost of established care for the missed appointment.  I am NOT willing to pay more.

Unfortunately, the cost of a missed appointment is not the insurance rate that you are suggesting although we do appreciate your effort in making a payment for $103.32. Since insurance does not pay for missed appointments, our fee-for-service rate applies.  This has been always been...

our practice, and that’s why the fee was higher.  We printed the last statement after everything has been applied to the account.  The balance of the no-show was not waived, and any additional reimbursements were applied to the account to clear any outstanding balances, and the actual reimbursement coming back to the patient will total $86.79.

I have spoken with [redacted], Owner of our company, and we will do the 50% just to resolve this.  We paid the provider for the time, and we would like to get something back in return.  Ms. [redacted] claims are unwarranted. Ms. [redacted] is incorrect regarding Licensed Marital Family Therapist.  The scope of work for these providers include both marital counseling and family counseling.  The amount of education is almost to the level of a psychologist, the main different is psychologist do testing and do have a doctorate versus a Master’s Degree.  LMFT specialize in a wide range of specialties including working with children with ADHD.  It would be worth wild for Ms. [redacted] to actually look up the description of a Licensed Marital Family Therapist and see what all they can do.  Here is a short synopsis of what they can do.  It is Marital for couples as well as Family counseling covering a wide range of services. NRS 641A.065 “Practice of clinical professional counseling” defined.      1. “Practice of clinical professional counseling” means the provision of treatment, assessment and counseling, or equivalent activities, to a person or group of persons to achieve mental, emotional, physical and social development and adjustment.      2. The term includes:      (a) Counseling interventions to prevent, diagnose and treat mental, emotional or behavioral disorders and associated distresses which interfere with mental health; and      (b) The assessment or treatment of couples or families, if the assessment or treatment is provided by a person who, through the completion of coursework or supervised training or experience, has demonstrated competency in the assessment or treatment of couples or families as determined by the Board. Thanks,Dr. [redacted], DHA, MOMDirector of OperationsOffice: [redacted]  Email: [redacted] Psychiatric Group, Inc.

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc to respond to complaint ID 10303950. We have reviewed the complainant's response, and simply do not see why Linder Psychiatric Group would be responsible for the patient bill. The patient was seen by a child and Adolescent Psychiatrist on 3 occasions. Linder Psychiatric Group could not anticipate the future departure of the clinician from the group. There is no reason that the bill for said services should not be paid.

This is an example of another provider in the area, and how it demonstrates the fees are not out of the ordinary for mental health professional services in the area.  Insurance does not pay for missed appointments, that is why our fee-for-service rate applies for the appointment.  We are not sure what you are referencing.  I believe this will be our final response.  Thank you!

I am rejecting this response because: Linder Psychiatric is responsible for the employee they hired.  My insurance is limited on accepting adolescent psychiatric help.  After reading the reviews about the office I didn't want to go there.  When I called the other company of who my insurance would cover they had a 3 month wait.  I was desperate to get the process started so I went with Linder.  This turned out to be a big mistake because I didn't receive the services I desperately needed.

Review: They keep sending me invoices for money I do not owe them. They do not sending a billing statement that shows my visits vs. how much co-pay I paid. This office expects $20 co-pay each visit and does not allow you to see the doctor before paying your $20 co-pay. Therefore, I do not see how I owe any money at all yet I keep getting these invoices and although I know I don't owe it, I pay it so it doesn't go to collections but now four months later I get another invoice for $20 plus a $10 late fee out of the blue, no explanation as to why I owe it or anything. I think they are making invoices up and/or their accounting system is screwed up. I'm sick of paying $20 for visits I didn't make. Their accounting department needs to be audited.Desired Settlement: I want a statement of all my visits and the payments applied to them so I can match my checking account statements and payments I made. I want the $10 late charge removed because I didn't owe them $20 in the first place. And I definitely don't want any of this to go on my credit report. I just want them to stop sending me invoices four or five months after I've stopped going to their office and I want them to get their accounting records straight. Thank you!

Consumer

Response:

This issue has been resolved. Kinder has returned the $20 I overpaid them to me. Thank u so much for your assistance.

Review: I took my daughter went to Linder Psychiatric Inc to speak to a psychiatrist so he can prescribe something for her mood disorder. We saw the psychiatrist 2 times and was not able to get the medication she needed. After her final evaluation the doctor moved to New York. My daughter sees a psychologist from different company so we weren't there for counseling. I was not able to get a prescription for her. We wasted total of 3 hours and lost the time she should have been medicated. We had to start the whole evaluation process over again which held back my daughter from being on the proper medication by months. It is hard to find a psychiatrist for adolescents. When we finally found one we were were not able to have a first evaluation for another 2 months. Now Linder Psychiatry wants me to pay the bill even though it was there employee who left with out notice.Desired Settlement: I would like the bill for $850.69 to be erased as I never received the services I originally came to Linder for.

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc. to respond to complaint ID [redacted]. We are sorry that the complainant experience did not meet expectations. It is standard practice at Linder Psychiatric Group, and considered a good industry practice, to execute the initial psychiatric evaluation over 2-3 sessions. This is for the benefit of the patient, so that a comprehensive, thorough evaluation can take place. This helps to ensure that patients receive the right diagnoses and subsequent treatment plan. The patient was seen for this evaluation process on 4/23/13, 4/30/13, and 5/14/13. It does appear that the evaluation process was completed and that treatment was beginning to commence, per usual. While it is extremely unfortunate that the clinician tendered resignation and left the practice, that is a circumstance that is beyond the control of Linder Psychiatric Group. The patient received professional psychiatric services, from a psychiatrist. There is no reason that the bill for said services should not be paid.

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc to respond to complaint ID 10303950. We have reviewed the complainant's response, and simply do not see why Linder Psychiatric Group would be responsible for the patient bill. The patient was seen by a child and Adolescent Psychiatrist on 3 occasions. Linder Psychiatric Group could not anticipate the future departure of the clinician from the group. There is no reason that the bill for said services should not be paid.

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because: Linder Psychiatric is responsible for the employee they hired. My insurance is limited on accepting adolescent psychiatric help. After reading the reviews about the office I didn't want to go there. When I called the other company of who my insurance would cover they had a 3 month wait. I was desperate to get the process started so I went with Linder. This turned out to be a big mistake because I didn't receive the services I desperately needed.

Review: Linder Psych has caused my family hardship. Sept. 2013 I had called for an appointment for my daughter. I gave my insurance info and they assured me the provider they had chosen was covered under my insurance; Dr. [redacted]. After four visits Dr. [redacted] quit. We never received any feedback from this provider regarding my daughters care. In the meantime, I started receiving bills from Linder stating my insurance denied these claim for out-of-network provider. I then spoke with the supervisor at the time, [redacted], who stated he would try to pursue my insurance as it was a mistake that Dr. [redacted] wasn't listed as an in-network provider as their entire group is in network with my insurance company ([redacted]). He then stated NOT to pay anything on the bill I received and assured me if he couldnt get my insurance company to pay they would waive the amount and I would definitely not have to pay as it was a mistake on their part. Then interest charges started to be added to the bills. I tried caIling and was told [redacted] was not longer there and finally got a hold of a new supervisor, [redacted], 08/28/2014, who has been working there for two weeks and has no clue about this matter; told me they would not be waiving the charges no matter what the previous supervisor had told me and that my kids were banned from coming to any future appointments until I have paid this bill. I called my insurance company requesting their advice. They informed me that all Linder would have to do is call and explain that their group is in-network and it was an error that Dr. [redacted] was not put on the list and they would pay the claim. I called [redacted] and asked her to call my insurance explaining this; she stated that they will not waste their time calling my insurance to resolve the issue and that they expect me to pay asap. I am appalled at the way I have been treated. They clearly misinformed me from the beginning. They say I owe $619.10 for services that would be covered.Desired Settlement: None of this is my fault nor my families and I should not be liable for Linders mistakes.Unfortunately, they keep adding interest of $78.00 a month to my bill and threatened to send me to collections. I had to pay them. I have sent them a check for $619.10. I would like a complete refund and if possible their company fined or shut down. Their reviews online are awful and Im not the only person having to suffer from their lack business management. Thank you.

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc. to respond to complaint 1D [redacted]. We are sorry that the complainant experience did not meet expectations. I cannot speak to what the complainant was or was not told by our staff when she booked the initial appointment for her daughter, nor the substance of a conversation that she had with an employee that does not work here any longer, and is therefore not available for comment. The complainant did sign, however prior to having her first appointment with Dr. [redacted], our “Confirmation of Benefits/Patient Rights and Responsibility Statement.” This was signed by the complainant and acknowledged as having been read and understood on 11/15/2013. This document states, in addition to other office policies:

“This office files insurance claims to your primary insurance company as a courtesy so you, one time, at no charge. We will re-bill or resubmit any claims upon request, one additional time, at no charge to your up to thirty (30) days from the date of service. For any subsequential claim re-submissions or claims that must be re- billed; there will be a $5.00 charge per claim/submission. After thirty (30) days from the date of service, you will be responsible in full and will have to follow up with your insurance company regarding unpaid claims unless otherwise specified by your health plan. We will gladly provide you with appropriate copies for you to submit to your insurance company so that you may be reimbursed. Accounts 45 days past due are subject to 18% APR interest rate.

Charges are subject to review by your Insurance company and if denied, you are personally responsible for any amount that your insurance company does not pay....”

[redacted] brought this matter to the attention of our business owner, who was well aware of the issue, as this case had been brought to her for review by two managers in the past. The owner of our company has not wavered in that this balance was the responsibility of the patient/family, as ultimately it is the patient’s responsibility to understand their insurance and to make appointments with clinicians who are in network. We regret that there were errors on both sides, however the patient did receive services and is responsible for knowing what their insurance covers. Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc. does make every attempt, as well, to train its employees and provide spread sheets on a weekly basis with regard to which clinicians are contracted with what insurance companies. Ultimately, the responsibility does fall on me insurance holder and they signed an agreement to such.

Per a documented incident report, the complainant asked us (after having a conversation with her insurance company), to re-submit the claims under another in network provider to receive payment. It was explained to the complainant that it would be unethical and fraudulent to bill for services by a certain provider if they had not in fact rendered those services.

Again, I cannot speak to conversations that were had between the complainant and staff members who are no longer available to further investigate some of the specifics of the complaint. However, based on the signed rights and responsibilities, the complainant is responsible for any portion of visits that are not covered by her insurance company.

I hope that this documentation adequately responds to the concerns raised by this complainant.

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because:I am

writing in response to the rebuttal provided by Linder Psychiatric Group, and

in general am pleased that they openly admit three things:

1. They have no idea what the staff told us.

2. They admit they made errors.

3. They are aware that not all of their doctors are in network with our

insurance provider.

The crux of our argument rests on the fact that we were directed by our

insurance provider to this Linder Psychiatric Group, and over the phone and upon

arrival provided our insurance information. The staff there are literally

hired there to help us ensure that our insurance is billed, an in-network

doctor selected and a time-slot scheduled for us to receive care. They

selected, after seeing our insurance coverage, a member of their staff that was

not covered by our insurance. This is exactly the error we're

upset about. Plain and simple, the "mistake" that was made

began with them failing to select the correct staff member to provide care to

our daughter.

Every single moment since we have received the bill, which was well within the

30 day period, has been to dispute and fight an unfair and unnecessary charge

resulting from this staff member mistake.

If what they want us to

believe is true, then they expect their customers to assume their staff is

incompetent, incapable and uncaring people who we cannot trust to actually

select an in-network care provider upon arrival to their place of business.

We are to first select a group from our insurance list, arrive at the place of

business, and then quiz the attending assistant assuming that she

is going to get our insurance selection wrong. Is that what I understand?

It's our fault that they sent us to the wrong care provider in their workplace?

No. Not in our opinion. We expect that a decent level of care and thought

will go into selecting the care provider they recommend in their place of

business based on the patient’s coverage, instructions, and availability. Good patient care would include not only

admitting your mistakes but making it right.

We should not be punished by paying for Linder Psychiatric Group’s

mistakes and lack of concern and well-being of their patients.

Also,

please do not re-bill my insurance and charge then charge me for it. That is ridiculous. I will not stand for receiving

nothing more than a refund from you.

Thank

you,

[redacted] on behalf of [redacted]

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc. to respond to complaint ID [redacted]. We have reviewed this complainant’s response. In regard to the issue of the patient being assigned to a provider that was not paneled with their insurance, it seems that some responsibility rests on both sides. It is our office’s practice to check a spreadsheet that is circulated and updated weekly to ensure that this does not happen. We do regret that this apparently did not happen in this instance. We also feel, however, that some responsibility rests with the complainant to ensure that any provider they seek treatment from is covered by their insurance policy. We will be conducting re-training with all of our administrative staff members on 11/25/2014, to attempt to avoid this same thing happening in the future. As a matter of recompense, we are willing to offer the complainant a refund of 25% of the $619.10 payment that was submitted by the complainant to settle the account ($154.78).

We hope that this is found to be an acceptable resolution to the matter

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed your offer and must decline. You have already stated your fault in this matter and my family deserves 100% of the charges from the visits including the interest charges refunded back to us. It was your staff who set my daughter with an out of network doctor and lied about it saying she was but you forgot to turn in Dr. [redacted]’s paperwork to my insurance and it was your staff who told me not to pay on the bills I had been receiving stating they would take care of it while allowing hundreds of dollars to accrue in interest. I will not accept anything less the $619.10 refunded back to me. If you refuse we will have to escalate these matters. My daughter has suffered enough being switched from doctor to doctor then kicked out once she finally got established with Dr. [redacted] then went through weeks of depression not understanding why she couldn’t see her “talking doctor” anymore. I have been lied to over and over and pushed aside when I had real concerns and threatened to be sent to collections for your mistakes. At this point, we can end all of this by just refunding my money. I don’t want to have to escalate these matters.

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc. to respond to complaint ID [redacted]. We have reviewed this complainant’s most recent response. Responsibility rests with both parties in this matter. We have offered retraining to our staff and also offered a monetary solution. The patient in this case received clinical, psychiatric services. Linder Psychiatric Group has a policy of not allowing patients to be seen if balances are not current. The patient was not “kicked out” of our practice; she could have continued to be seen by Dr. [redacted] after payment of the balance. The office policy had to be enforced after a decision regarding the charges had been made by the Vice President. We regret that the complainant feels this strongly, but it is unreasonable for professional, clinical services to be rendered free of charge.

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because my daughter did not receive services free of charge. My insurance would have paid for it (although the services were sub par and actually a waste of my time since she left us no feedback and left my daughter feeling abandoned). My insurance even asked me to have you give them a call to discuss the claims and come to a conclusion. When I called and asked if your office would call them and explain that your staff forgot to turn in Dr. [redacted]'s paperwork and that maybe you could turn it in now, I was told by your new manager that "calling my insurance was a waste of your staff's time." After all that and you banning my family from the office why would I ever want to come back to your awful establishment. I don't understand why you fought me over this so hard. I was bringing both my children once a week for over a year. I paid my Co pays faithfully, my insurance paid all my children's claims for Dr. [redacted] and Dr. [redacted]. Why would you fret over $619.20? When my insurance was practically paying you that every week. You lost two recurring, faithful patients over your pride to be right, when you are so clearly wrong. Because I am fed up with your group and tired of this ranting back and forth, I will take a refund of $500.00, nothing less. Then those services won't be so called... "free of charge".

Business

Response:

I am writing on behalf of Linder Psychiatric Group, Inc to respond to complaint ID [redacted]. We have reviewed this complainant's most recent response. Responsibility rests with both parties in this matter. We have provided retraining to our staff, and also offered a monetary solution. The offer for a 25% refund of the fees in question remains; this is what we can offer.

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because:It looks like you have rejected our very fair offer for a discount of $500.00 on the money you stole. Your response includes a regurgitation of previous communications, indicating "shared responsibility". In order for that to be true, you would need two parties at fault. There is only one party at fault in this matter, and that is you. Your staff messed up. Plain and simple. We provided you all of our valid insurance information and your staff provided us the recommended person to use. At no time were we given any indication that you may have not selected a staff member not covered by our insurance.So like this email, and as in previous emails, you have admitted culpability in the form of accepting the above version of the facts. The only mistake we made, and the blame we share, is going to your place of business in the first place. There is no offer of $500.00 available any more. We want every dime you stole from us back. There are plenty of other people you have done this to online, and I assure you this issue is not going away anytime soon, for us, or for the numerous others that you have done this same thing to.Here's an example of your rating online, and the reviews of people whom have had IDENTICAL experiences with your business. Your organization literally has a 1 star rating due to the sheer volume of people who have reported this exact same circumstance. [redacted]Furthermore, your statement of "re-training" indicates that this issue is so prevalent, so ingrained, and so persistent that you've actually had to go to the trouble of reviewing and modifying your procedures to reduce the frequency at which this error occurs. This is not a consolation to us, nor does it look good for you. It only solidifies our belief that this is not just a one off error, but rather consistent, regular, willful ignorance with a direct attributable cause that you had and have the power to change. This only further speaks to the fact that this is your error, and you need to own it. Our family's $600+ dollars were stolen do to the incompetence of your staff that was so severe, they actually needed retraining how to do their jobs. The fact that you need retraining not only validates our claim, but speaks volumes about the above similar circumstances. This obviously isn't the first person you've done this to. You can help us move on from this by paying back the money you stole. If this offer is rejected, we will pursue this matter with the psychiatric board and will explore further legal efforts. If you reject this offer, you will hear from us again, and again, and again, from until we receive justice. So that we are clear: Give us our money back that you stole.

Consumer

Response:

I would like to reject the offer of Arbitration for complaint ID [redacted]. We would like to hold off on this process for a bit as it binds us to the results and we have a litigation attorney we would like to get advice from. If we decide to go through arbritration; can we contact you and re-open the complaint? Otherwise, can you please send Linder our last response so they know where we stand. Maybe they will agree to pay to try and avoid any further scrutiny from other bureaus and attorneys we plan on contacting. Please give me a call if you have any questions or information that you believe to be helpful.

Sincerely,

Linder Psychiatric Group is one of the most difficult healthcare delivery service sites to deal with. They have extremely questionable business practices such as a 72 hour cancellation policy - and this is 72 BUSINESS HOURS - which can mean something like 5 days at times - with NO exceptions. This is for the patient and yet they cancel for their providers all the time. They had poor customer service, would make NO exceptions for anything. They also seemed to have dubious kept asking me for small amounts of money each visit - despite being insured and never being asked for money anywhere else besides my co-pay. It was odd - one week $3.76, the next $0.80 - and they actually wanted me to pay - no joke - $0.80!? I seriously question the ethics of how they run their business.