West Town Dental Group

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/27) */
The consumer called to make an appointment. When she called, she was advised of her outstanding balance. As she has stated, part of her balance was due to her deductible. However, her claim regarding her insurance contradicting our bill is...

incorrect. This is something we confirmed on more than one occasion with her insurance. Her 4 month outstanding bill was sent to her on more than one occasion along with her insurance's documents which showed the breakdown of her responsibility. These documents were sent to her by her insurance as well as us. Never did we get any response. We understand that sometimes letters get lost in the mail but it is unlikely for her not to receive mail from her insurance as well at least one letter from us (We sent her 4 statements that reflected her past due balance).
The consumer did speak to two ladies at our front desk. The first, whom she stated was very polite, advised her of her balance. The same receptionist also explained the reasons for her balance. She owed $X that was dictated by her insurance as well as a failed appointment charge. The consumer disagreed with the failed appointment charge and her co pay charge and asked our receptionist to call her insurance to clarify charges. Our receptionist agreed.
Our receptionist checked record and confirmed the consumer failed her appointment. It was also noted that the consumer was even called the day prior to remind her of her appointment. Office policy on appointments that are not canceled within 24 hours are subject to a fee.
The consumer's insurance company was also called by our receptionist at the consumer's request, and her charges were confirmed. Our receptionist was not able to call her back because she left office early that day. However, she documented in the office that the consumer's charges were verified as well as her failed appointment.
When the consumer called back to check on our receptionist's findings, she did not except what was found and she requested to speak to the office manager. This is when I spoke to her. I listened to her complaint and addressed every single concern she had. However, the consumer was not satisfied with the outcome. I advised her that as the subscriber, she would have to contact her insurance at this point in order to clear up the issue. She did not like this. She demanded that we call them again and clear it up. I then informed her that the insurance has already confirmed charges and has even deducted it from our payment. She still argued. At this point I apologized to the consumer for the inconvenience and advised her to call her insurance again. She was clearly upset that I could not help her anymore and showed it by screaming and making demands to me on the phone. She stated "If I was any other woman, you would not be talking to me like this!" I asked her what she meant by her comment to which she replied "You know what I mean!" I politely told her to have a nice day and said goodbye as she kept screaming at me. She then stated "I don't know why you are making a big deal of $100 bucks." To which I replied "I'm sorry you feel that way mam, have a nice day". She would not allow me to hang up. So I told her goodbye one last time and disconnected the call.
The other receptionist the consumer spoke with was just another person picking up the phone when the consumer called back. The other receptionist had no idea what was going on and asked me to get involved and speak to the consumer again. When the consumer stated that I pulled the phone away from my receptionist, she was not aware that our 2nd receptionist asked me to get involved and get on the phone on our in-office text system. I simply got on the phone from my office while the consumer was talking to the 2nd receptionist that asked for my assistance. When I got on the phone I advised the consumer that I would send her another bill and to please contact her insurance. I apologized for the inconvenience but advised there was nothing more we could do. The consumer called me unprofessional and stated she didn't appreciate my tone.
In conclusion, the consumer called to make an appointment. Upon being told she had a balance, she asked for clarification and confirmation of that balance. Once that confirmation was given to the consumer, she became combative and argumentative. It was difficult to speak to the consumer at this point due to her frustration. She barely allowed me to speak. We never made any statements like "Do you expect me to be nice to you and you owe us money?" or "It doesn't matter I have the bill here and you need to pay". We don't speak to patients in that manner. She was told that we verified and confirmed her charges and she simply was not satisfied with that. Never did she offer any assistance in this matter that involved her insurance. She just demanded we keep calling her insurance until they confirm what she was stating. We could not do this because her insurance as well as the documents they provided reflected the bill that we sent her.
[redacted]Please be advised that the only documentation I can send to support this matter would be in violation of HIPPA privacy laws. If the documents are required and approved by the consumer, we have no issue sharing all documentation.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/08/28) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
In response, the information that West Town Clinic office manager submitted is false. The statement that was given has been written by the person in which the claim is about. Naturally he is trying to protect himself and his behavior at this point. The issue has not been addressed. I never scheduled an appointment on April 22nd in which I am being charged a $25 no show fee. I was seen on April 16th. I am being charged out of spite by the office manager. Due to the fact that I was told something different from my insurance I called them back to verify that I wasn't being charged twice. They informed me that certain procedures requires the deductible. They also confirmed the previous charges and patient responsibility. This is all I was asking from the beginning. The issue at this point is the no show fee for an appointment I never made and bad customer service from the office manager.I would greatly appreciate a response from the office managers authority.

Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/08/31) */
I am writing in response to consumer's complaint. On 4/22/2015, consumer failed a scheduled appointment. Appointment was to continue her current treatment. Consumer was called by our office on 4/21/2015 to remind her of appointment. Consumer was a no call, no show for her scheduled appointment on 4/22/2015. Office policy states that patient scheduled appointments not canceled within 24 hours are subject to $25 failed/missed appointment fee. Our receptionists do not make appointments without speaking to the patient and scheduling with them. This appointment would not been made had the consumer not requested it.
If the consumer would like response from someone higher than the office manager, she will have to contact Dr. Khalifa during his work hours. He has been advised of this incident. Unfortunately, Dr Khalifa was not present on the day the consumer initially called. He asked that this be resolved by office manager and parties involved. However, consumer is welcome to contact owner to discuss her concerns.
Both receptionists involved can vouch that previous statement/response to consumers complaint was 100% accurate. They were both questioned prior to West Town Dental's initial response to initial complaint. Had the consumer contacted her insurance as advised, she would have acknowledged that we did everything she requested and more (charges were confirmed more than once). This may also be confirmed by her insurance (that we called to confirm charges more than once). Stipulations regarding her deductible and her insurance were also explained to her by us. However, the consumer kept insisting she paid her deductible elsewhere which is something we confirmed as false with her insurance too.
Receptionists involved also can corroborate that consumer was much more aggressive to all parties involved after she was told that we have confirmed her charges. It was just a matter of the consumer making demands that were not met according to her. We did what she asked, confirmed her charges but consumer continued to argue that her charges were not legitimate. In fact, consumer stated to first receptionist that if charges were legitimate, she did not want to schedule due to her lack of funds.
Its obvious the consumer is upset. We are not sure what remedy she seeks but would like to move forward at this point. If there are any suggestions to resolve this, please advise.