Valley Isle Professional Services Inc.

My name is Lea V*** and I am the owner of Valley Isle
Professional Services which provides medical billing services to doctorsThis
patient is stating 1) that she declined anesthesia services for cataract
surgery; 2) that her insurance does not cover anesthesia services; 3) that she
says
anesthesia services were not necessary; and 4) she states she never
received a phone call back from our office
1) The standard of care for cataract surgery requires the
presence of an anesthesiologist during the entire procedure so the patient can
be continuously monitored and care provided if necessaryThe procedure was
done at the *** *** *** and it is their policy that an
anesthesiologist must be in the room for every cataract surgeryWhen the
patient initially called our office on 10-27-the patient was informed about
the standard of care and that an anesthesiologist is always present and it was
suggested that she call her surgeon’s office for additional information as to
why the surgeon needs to have an anesthesiologist present
2) The patient has stated that her insurance does not cover
anesthesia servicesThis is not a correct statement as her insurance does
cover anesthesia services for cataract surgeryHer insurance company was
billed and we received payment for the insurance company’s portion for the
anesthesia servicesThe patient was billed for the anesthesia services copay
(determined by the insurance company) along with the Hawaii State Tax amount
due
3) The patient states that anesthesia services were not
necessaryAs stated above it is the policy of the *** *** *** to
have an anesthesiologist present for all cataract surgeries
4) The patient states “promises were made to have somebody
call me back so I can explain … but I never received a call back, only more
collection notices”. On 10-27-the
patient called our office and discussed her concerns and it was suggested to
call the surgeon’s office for information as to why the surgeon needed to have
an anesthesiologist present during the cataract procedureHer husband then
called us on 11-11-to dispute the bill and he expressed that his wife did
not call the surgeon’s office The staff
member handling the call told him she would have the billing manager (me) call
him backI called him on 11-12-and explained again that an anesthesiologist
is required to be in the room for all cataract surgeries; that the patient is
legally responsible for the copay due; and just as I was going to state that
the patient signed a consent form at *** *** *** he hung up on me
Our standard billing cycle was followed for the patient
The patient states that she wants the issue closed and
“won’t be bullied into paying a not-legitimate bill”This is a legitimate bill
for the patient’s anesthesia servicesThe patient’s husband called and left a
message on our voicemail on 1-7-at 119pm requesting a callI returned his
call at approximately 4pm on 1-7-and left a message for him to call meHe
then called me at about 420pm and I discussed his concerns regarding his wife’s
bill and advised him that the bill was written off because of non-payment
Our office does not bully patients into paying their bills
and it is our policy to treat patients with dignity and respectWe do
everything we can to assist patients with their billing concernsIf you need
any additional information please do not hesitate to contact me.Lea V***, CPCValley Isle Professional Services, Inc.** *** ***
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My name is Lea V[redacted] and I am the owner of Valley Isle
Professional Services which provides medical billing services to doctors. This
patient is stating 1) that she declined anesthesia services for cataract
surgery; 2) that her insurance does not cover anesthesia services; 3)...

that she
says anesthesia services were not necessary; and 4) she states she never
received a phone call back from our office.
1) The standard of care for cataract surgery requires the
presence of an anesthesiologist during the entire procedure so the patient can
be continuously monitored and care provided if necessary. The procedure was
done at the [redacted] and it is their policy that an
anesthesiologist must be in the room for every cataract surgery. When the
patient initially called our office on 10-27-15 the patient was informed about
the standard of care and that an anesthesiologist is always present and it was
suggested that she call her surgeon’s office for additional information as to
why the surgeon needs to have an anesthesiologist present.
2) The patient has stated that her insurance does not cover
anesthesia services. This is not a correct statement as her insurance does
cover anesthesia services for cataract surgery. Her insurance company was
billed and we received payment for the insurance company’s portion for the
anesthesia services. The patient was billed for the anesthesia services copay
(determined by the insurance company) along with the Hawaii State Tax amount
due.
3) The patient states that anesthesia services were not
necessary. As stated above it is the policy of the [redacted] to
have an anesthesiologist present for all cataract surgeries.
4) The patient states “promises were made to have somebody
call me back so I can explain … but I never received a call back, only more
collection notices”.  On 10-27-15 the
patient called our office and discussed her concerns and it was suggested to
call the surgeon’s office for information as to why the surgeon needed to have
an anesthesiologist present during the cataract procedure. Her husband then
called us on 11-11-15 to dispute the bill and he expressed that his wife did
not call the surgeon’s office.  The staff
member handling the call told him she would have the billing manager (me) call
him back. I called him on 11-12-15 and explained again that an anesthesiologist
is required to be in the room for all cataract surgeries; that the patient is
legally responsible for the copay due; and just as I was going to state that
the patient signed a consent form at [redacted] he hung up on me.
Our standard billing cycle was followed for the patient.
The patient states that she wants the issue closed and
“won’t be bullied into paying a not-legitimate bill”. This is a legitimate bill
for the patient’s anesthesia services. The patient’s husband called and left a
message on our voicemail on 1-7-16 at 119pm requesting a call. I returned his
call at approximately 4pm on 1-7-16 and left a message for him to call me. He
then called me at about 420pm and I discussed his concerns regarding his wife’s
bill and advised him that the bill was written off because of non-payment.
Our office does not bully patients into paying their bills
and it is our policy to treat patients with dignity and respect. We do
everything we can to assist patients with their billing concerns. If you need
any additional information please do not hesitate to contact me.
Lea V[redacted], CPCValley Isle Professional Services, Inc.[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]