I think it’s funny that people still think doctors are running the show in these situations. Unless you own your own practice which is becoming rare, you don’t really control these things. A long time ago, I had a patient complain that my bill was more than his last office visit by another provider. Turns out the previous visit wasn’t collected properly. He actually owed the same amount for both visits and now that they recognized it we’re going to charge that too. I asked the group/owners to give the guy a break since I felt he was misled although accidentally. They billed him the full amounts for both visits. The doctor here already admits it is a mistake and has informed management. Unless he or she owns, their power has become much less over the years to influence this.Ahhh, the great modern American physician. Bemoaning the fact that doctors no longer receive the respect that they used to while simultaneously holding themselves to lower professional standards than would be expected of a McDonald's cashier. Step one is definitely to determine how much you value your relationship with this provider/entity (incl. what alternatives you have available). Working with the practice manager and physician in combination is likely appropriate, particularly if the error is disclosed in writing. As others have indicated, chances are good this gets resolved with a call to the lab from the doc or the practice manager. Chances are also good once the practice manager has a "fix this" from the doctor instead of you, they jump through as many hoops as needed to get this fixed.It is precisely this attitude from some medical professionals that is being lamented in this thread. What other profession acts in this way, where the professional makes a $750 error, is called on it, refuses to fix it or offer to help to fix it, and then aims to fire a patient who escalates the situation to seek a remedy due to him? How much white space is there between “pay this mistaken bill we both agree is an error or I will revoke your access to medical care” and extortion?
Going nuclear isn't generally advisable as a starting point, but if it doesn't get resolved and you don't need the practice I say play the slightly unhinged person. Torpedo the practice on every review site you can find, contact higher-ups if there are any, file with the BBB, contact the medical board, actually file that small claims suit, etc. - you've gotten guidance on how to do this too. It is actually unlikely to directly solve the problem (and might even hinder it) but might help the next person. Making someone have even a few minutes of worry they wasted 200k and 7-10+ years of their life on a medical education and now won't be able to feed their family is meaningful and might get them to intervene earlier next time. I actually don't think this happens nearly enough. Insurance has certainly made a mess of our system, but providers have absolutely played a role too. Incompetence, laziness and refusal to take ownership is normative and everyone loves to point the finger at insurance when they are only one small part of the problem (and I say this as someone in healthcare). Providers have more power than they pretend to and this is especially true if this is a small PP (where the practice manager may report directly to them) versus a giant hospital systems where the chain of command may be separate. I do my best not to screw up, but when I do (and someone working under me screwing up is my screw-up too!) I will move heaven and earth to get it fixed because that's what being a professional means. I've had more than one missed lunch calling insurance or late night in the office sending out emails to get things handled.
Statistics: Posted by Rex66 — Fri Jun 21, 2024 7:04 am — Replies 149 — Views 11296
