The Urology Place

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because the provider is attempting to mix truth with liesYes, during the first visit the office staff processed my payment and didn't attempt to offer me a receiptShe advised me at time of visit my co-payment was $Immediately after processing my payment, I get alerts to my phone regarding all transactionsThis is when I notified her of the paymentThis is when she attempted to claim it was a mistake and she was sure she hit $and not $The after surgery visit was completely differentI changed my debit card to only process specific amounts and I set it at $for this visitTherefore, if this office was being honest upfront and not telling consumers that we honor your insurance and also stating that we're only processing $co-payment as she did the first time and this time as well; then this would not have been an issueShe was then unable to draft more than $from my account and had to resort to plan be and state; we have the right to request payment upfront Unfortunately, again, this is not the entire truthAs a part of their contract with Blue Cross and Blue Shield they are required to honor the con-pay agreed established within the contract between said insurance and vendorPer the contract, they do have to right to ask for full payment up front for any services provided other than the standard office visitI educated the office staff at that time and requested to know what additional services were being requested by the doctor in order for her to request payment and her replay was she wasn't aware of what additional services would be providedTherefore, if there are no additional services requested, other than follow up post surgery office visit; the $co-pay office visit should have been honoredI spoke to the doctor twice regarding this matter and he assured me twice that his office staff; including his in office phlebotomist was in network with BC/BSHe then sent me on wild goose chase implementing that the [redacted] must have sent my blood work to this out of network lab; knowing, as he as he states now, his phlebotomist was not in networkHe assured me he had no clue as to how my blood work was sent to an out of network labRegardless of their name change; he already knew his in-office phlebotomist was not in-network with one of the largest insurance providers in the countryI will be more than happy to sign a release of information, providing access to contact the [redacted] and the [redacted] ; so they can advise this agency on how many calls I made trying to get to the bottom of this when he knew the truth and sent me on a wild goose chase that only led back to him It's doctors like him, that currently give his profession a bad nameHe's one of the reasons, we have this fight for health care and benefitsHe runs a fraudulent office and it needs to be more closely monitored if he's allowed to stay in businessHe thought I would be like all the others he's taken advantage of, and just pay the bill and accept this type of treatmentI'm not sorry, I've disappointed you! Regards, [redacted]

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: my complaint is not in regards to the careI'm stating the facts and events which occurred regarding billing, insurance; out of network lab use after I requested and was assured all services would be in-network; and this office's lies to hide it's deceptive practices
Regards,
*** ***

The billing charge was a mistake, which was then corrected within hours of the errorIt is by no means fraud or unprofessional conduct The Urology Place’s billing staff inadvertently charged the patient a cash pay rate of $for his visit instead of $as a copay
Although this was an unfortunate situation, the staff is very busy and mistakes can be made To rectify this situation, the staff immediately sent a message to the billing team, which has to contact the Doctor before issuing any refundsThe refund was made a few hours later in the dayUnfortunately, the credit card processor (Stripe, which is one of the largest companies and handles billions of dollars in transactions all over the world) takes a few days to post correctionsThe patient did not understand that this is out of our controlThis sequence of events with Stripe is documented in the billing credit card transaction, a copy of which has been providedThere was no fraud, no insurance claim, and the overcharge was corrected the same day it occurred.As far as paying in full for a visit, the patient does not understand that doctor offices have every right to be paid in full at the time services are completed, just like any other businessOnce the visit is completed, the coding is given to the front deskThe front desk then calculates the total, based on the benefits provided by the patient's insurancePatients usually have to pay a copay and what remains within their deductiblePatients are told that is the policy upfrontThis helps our small business stay efficient without having to employ staff for trying to do collections at a later date This practice is not unusual in today's medical environment.As to the second allegation of improperly using an out-of-network provider, we offer outside laboratory companies at our office as a convenience to patientsOtherwise, patients would have to make a second trip elsewhere for lab workMany patients are happy that we offer such a convenienceThe phlebotomist is not our employee and is trained by the lab company to hand patients a pamphlet explaining that they may be billing the patient out of networkThe patient signs an order for their lab work with the name of the laboratoryMany patients at this point may decline to obtain lab work with the in-office phlebotomistIn that case, patients and our staff will find out where their insurance company has decided they should go for lab work. Finally, we were not aware that the lab name had changed to *** *** ***We regret that confusionAgain, the lab is an outside company that we allow in our office as a convenience for the patients and the staffLess time is spent looking for results and we are usually better able to work with the lab if there are issues of confusion

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because the provider is attempting to mix truth with lies. 1. Yes, during the first visit the office staff processed my payment and didn't attempt to offer me a receipt. She advised me at time of visit my co-payment was $40. Immediately after processing my payment, I get alerts to my phone regarding all transactions. This is when I notified her of the payment. This is when she attempted to claim it was a mistake and she was sure she hit $40 and not $120.2. The after surgery visit was completely different. I changed my debit card to only process specific amounts and I set it at $40 for this visit. Therefore, if this office was being honest upfront and not telling consumers that we honor your insurance and also stating that we're only processing $40 co-payment as she did the first time and this time as well; then this would not have been an issue. She was then unable to draft more than $40 from my account and had to resort to plan be and state; we have the right to request payment upfront.  Unfortunately, again, this is not the entire truth. As a part of their contract with Blue Cross and Blue Shield they are required to honor the con-pay agreed established within the contract between said insurance and vendor. Per the contract, they do have to right to ask for full payment up front for any services provided other than the standard office visit. I educated the office staff at that time and requested to know what additional services were being requested by the doctor in order for her to request payment and her replay was she wasn't aware of what additional services would be provided. Therefore, if there are no additional services requested, other than follow up post surgery office visit; the $40 co-pay office visit should have been honored. 3. I spoke to the doctor twice regarding this matter and he assured me twice that his office staff; including his in office phlebotomist was in network with BC/BS. He then sent me on wild goose chase implementing that the [redacted] must have sent my blood work to this out of network lab; knowing, as he as he states now, his phlebotomist was not in network. He assured me he had no clue as to how my blood work was sent to an out of network lab. Regardless of their name change; he already knew his in-office phlebotomist was not in-network with one of the largest insurance providers in the country. I will be more than happy to sign a release of information, providing access to contact the [redacted] and the [redacted]; so they can advise this agency on how many calls I made trying to get to the bottom of this when he knew the truth and sent me on a wild goose chase that only led back to him. 
It's doctors like him, that currently give his profession a bad name. He's one of the reasons, we have this fight for health care and benefits. He runs a fraudulent office and it needs to be more closely monitored if he's allowed to stay in business. He thought I would be like all the others he's taken advantage of, and just pay the bill and accept this type of treatment. I'm not sorry, I've disappointed you!
Regards,
[redacted]

No additional comments for this disgruntled patient. He had no complaints about his medical care and we stand behind all of our statements and the proof provided to make sure billing was conducted properly.