Orthopaedic Associates of Wisconsin

I went in for a sprained knee. Dr. Merkow drained it, the fluid looked like beer without the carbonation. Merkow then gave me a cortisone shot in three different places never retracting the needle from my skin, very painful. A week later I am rushed into the emergency room with Septic arthritis. The emergency Room DR. Drained black blood from my knee and said you have to have surgury now! or you could die from the infection. My leg was filleted open and flushed out. Out of work for three months with no contact from Merkow what so ever. 43k in hospital bills, a permanently ruined knee, and the silent treatment from Orthopedic Associates on what happened. I am more and more pissed every day. I am Not one that believes in law suites but numerous DR's have told me to go after them.

Watch your billing. Orthopedic Associates over bills the insurance company and the patient. They shift funds around making it look like you didn't pay for items you thought you did.

I am quite upset with Orthopedic Associates of Wisconsin. I am assuming it is part of ProHealth due to my bill.

I sprained my ankle, at least that's what I was diagnosed with. Later, Dr. E. (follow up) said I had Achilles T. It starts with the ASAP walk in urgent care. The Physicians Assistant diagnosed me with a sprain. Fine. Tells me to go and get a "boot" in your Ortho store. Hands me the form. I am a 5.5 foot. I was fitted with a 5.5-8.5 boot. The boot made my foot worse and it had a defect in the rubber. I went back and was issued a smaller size 4-5.5. You can imagine that neither boot worked. It was either too big or too small. To make matters worse, I thought my insurance company would be covering in full. I guess I was wrong when Pro-health/Ortho charged my insurance company $499 for an $82 dollar boot sold on Amazon (same company, same boot). I was shocked. You want to talk about fraud. Here is a perfect example. Not only did my insurance company allowed $179, but then they try and get another $77.00 for the boot from me. A boot that I cannot wear at all. I can't return it because there's a no return policy.
Here I am stuck with a golden boot that made my ankle and foot worse. I had to go to Dick's Sporting Goods to find a wrap and that is when I felt better and my ankle and foot starting healing.

But it gets worse. I go for physical therapy, and do the follow up, and pay my co-pays. All of them. What does the billing department do. Make it look like I now paid for my boot $77.00 but not the co-pays. I have receipts showing I paid my co-pays. Now I understand they adjust to the most recent balance. How fair is all this? I have the boot, I have the bag it came in. What do I do? Now I owe for what it looks like co-pays I never paid for. I was asked each time I made a co-pay if I want to pay for the boot. I said, no I have to talk to someone about it. My final bill shows a balance of missing co-pays, but boot is paid in full.