We switched from Multi-care of Tacoma to Dr. Lo at the Doctors clinic in Silverdale few months ago due to horrible billing and the feeling that were tools to pay the bills vs. customers. We’ve been trying to work with multi-care since then to rationalize our bills. Last week instead of responding to our efforts Michelle was told pay now or collections, we forgot to tell you this, oh and by the way we have no power to help you at all you have to talk to the gig harbor location if you want help. WTF? Why dick us around for a month and change, when you can’t do anything in the first place. I’m so bloody annoyed right now…
The emails below have much better details, but Bottom line for me – everything at gig harbor multi-care is massively more expensive than anything else we’ve done. They gave Michelle a 3-minute ultra sound in gig harbor she did not even need and billed 660$ a few weeks later at another multi-care facility we had another ultra sound that was an hour long and only cost 225$. 13,200$ an hour for an ultra sound in gig harbor and 225$ an hour at another facility under the same hospital group.
First billing issue started at 7,999$ and ended at 100$ because we were not covered by insurance, and it’s gone downhill from there.
Emails and stuff – we have to yet to hear a response from
From: Kevin Miller
Sent: Friday, April 1, 2016 3:40 PM
To: Michelle; Linda Smith <Linda.Smith@multicare.org>
Subject: RE: Bill for Miller
Linda, I like pictures, pictures speak even better the words some times. Look at the picture below, it speaks to me, does it speak to you?
You’re billing annoyed us enough we moved to the birthing center in Silverdale. We see Doctor Lo there. Notice how Dr. Lo’s bills are small and reasonable – compared to the bills from your facility where every individual bill costs more than the total we’ve paid to the doctor we swapped too.
Your facility makes us feel like a revenue source ripe for the picking – Dr. Lo feels like someone who actually cares and is doing the right thing for us and not out to extract max level money from us. Dr. Lo’s office even checks EVERY SINGLE thing they bill for INFRONT OF us for insurance coverage – no random 8,000 bills denied by our insurance company there.
The response that will get us to back off and go away the quickest will be something like – sorry we screwed up. I am going to void your balance due and consider the money we received from Premera as an adequate amount to satisfy your bill. I don’t envision any other words we’d find satisfactory but people often do surprise me.
From: Michelle
Sent: Friday, April 1, 2016 3:01 PM
To: Linda Smith <Linda.Smith@multicare.org>
Cc: Kevin Miller
Subject: RE: Bill for Miller
Good afternoon Linda:
Short Version:
I have been going back and forth with Multicare billing department in regards to some charges we incurred in your office during the months of Nov, Dec, and January. Finally, today (after receiving a threat of collections) I was told they couldn’t help me I needed to go back to the physician’s office. So, I am coming to you with my complaints on charges and services requested from Dr. Molina; in the hopes you can adjust those charges.
Long Version:
On November 19, 2015, I visited your office for the first time for a OBGYN visit with Dr. Molina. He greeted me, performed a 2-minute ultrasound and told me to come back in a month for an intake appointment and exam. I returned to the office on December 10, 2015, answered all the medical questions and then went to the lab to give blood. I was told they would do an exam at my next appointment.
A week after giving blood, I received a call from your office informing me I had an antigen in my blood that could affect the baby. I was then directed to the Maternal Fetal Medicine office to get an ultrasound and talk to some genetic counselors. I made an appointment for January 25, 2016.
I returned to your office on January 5, 2016 for another appointment with Dr. Molina. He again took me into an ultrasound room, performed another 2 min. ultrasound. After which he discussed his knowledge that I would be going to the Maternal Fetal Medicine facility to get yet another ultrasound. He then told me to make an appointment for the first week of February and at that point he would do an exam.
This is where I start to get confused. I understand the initial ultrasound, that is pretty routine (this is my fourth pregnancy). I have no idea why Dr. Molina performed a second ultrasound knowing that I would be going in two weeks to a long, more thorough ultrasound at the Maternal Fetal Medicine facility. Also, after visiting your office 3 times, I never got an exam, just two ultrasounds and an intake appointment and told “next time you’ll get an exam”. I know every office is different but I have been to two other OBGYNs and both those places have always done a full vaginal exam with pap smear on the first appointment.
My main concerns are this:
- Two ultrasounds in three months, second ultrasound given with no reasoning from Dr. Molina and with him knowing I would be getting an ultrasound in two weeks. I don’t believe the second ultrasound should have happened, there was no reason for it.
- After reviewing all the medical bills, I find that a 2 min ultrasound in your office costs me $660.00. While an hour long more in-depth ultrasound at the Maternal Fetal Medicine clinic only cost me $225.00.
What I would like to have happen:
- I would like the first ultrasound on 11/19/15 priced at the same price as the Maternal Fetal Medicine clinic so $225 instead of $660
- I would like to not be charged for the second ultrasound on 1/5/16. I did not request it, I was not given a reason for it, and Dr. Molina knew I would be having an in depth ultrasound two weeks later.
I honestly feel as if this clinic was more interested in making money off me then my actual well-being. After 3 visits, I still hadn’t had an exam just ultrasounds and taking of my medical history. I kept being told “we’ll do the exam next time.” I switched back to my old Doctor in Silverdale after my third visit with Dr. Molina in January because I began to feel as if he didn’t really care about anything but charging for unnecessary tests.
I called the main billing department of Multicare on March 9, 2016 and request the above things from them. I was told they would review my file and get back to me either by phone or mail; they couldn’t give me a time period when I asked for that. Today I received a final notice that I needed to pay my bill or I would be going to collections.
I called them immediately to let them know I was waiting to hear back about the reviewing of my file. They said the review had already been done and that all they do is bill insurance, they aren’t in charge of pricing. If I wanted adjustments on charges billed, I had to go back to the original Physician’s office for that. Which leads me back to you. When I asked why no one had contacted me about the results of the review I was given a roundabout answer or non-answer.
I am hoping that you can simply adjust the charge for the first ultrasound and erase all charges for the unnecessary second ultrasound.
I would appreciate your help in this matter as I’m tired, pregnant, and can’t deal with the extra stress this is causing me.
Thank you in advance,
Michelle Miller
Here is my account number if you need it for the billing: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
DOB: XXXXXXXXXXx
