Can they really do that?
Unfortunately yes, they can, and do...
A doctor prescribes a drug to a patient (not me, I am not the subject here...but I know who is). The patient takes the drug for five years as part of a maintenance program. The doctor see the patient periodically for check ups only. No changes are made to dose, medication type, or anything else. Like many modern drugs, this drug should not be stopped suddenly. A sudden withdrawal of treatment would not be life threatening; however, it would be unpleasant. The doctor began treatment "for safety reasons" because of the patients activities. The patient would potentially put themselves in danger if they engaged in these activities w/o treatment.
The patient missed an appointment, and the doctor decided not to refill the prescription until an appointment was rescheduled. OK, no problem, that sounds fair (see you tomorrow, right?)....NO...The doctor went to their vacation home out of state for three weeks. The patient was cut off. The patient called the doctor to ask about the activity the doctor was concerned about and got no return call. The patient called several times with questions about activities, whether another doctor might see them, etc. Not one phone call was returned. The patient called another doctor on their own, got an appointment that day, and resumed treatment.
So what do you think? Was the doctor arrogant, or incompetent? Both? Or are they just practicing good medicine? Do you think they were justified in doing this to the patient? I don't. Even though I am not the patient, I'm thinking about a complaint...to save others from this doctor. Someone needs to say something. How would you like to be this patient? If this is common practice, it needs to change.
People who have a responsibility to care for others need to have a higher standard.
Oh, one more detail...! A month later, even though the patient canceled the appointment in advance...they got a "No Show" bill for $50!! They called the doctor's office to ask why they were being charged...Can you guess what happened next?
The doctor did not call back. No one from the office called back.
I think a formal complaint is in order my self...I do.
The doctor uses an outside billing service. As a result you get a doctor who will not discuss the situation, and a billing company who (is arms length) just bills, and adds interest each month if payment is not made...(there is no dispute process). They send them to collections after a specified period of time.
Now, that should not even be legal. You at least need a dispute process!
Maybe I should write my congressman...:-)
IDK
A doctor prescribes a drug to a patient (not me, I am not the subject here...but I know who is). The patient takes the drug for five years as part of a maintenance program. The doctor see the patient periodically for check ups only. No changes are made to dose, medication type, or anything else. Like many modern drugs, this drug should not be stopped suddenly. A sudden withdrawal of treatment would not be life threatening; however, it would be unpleasant. The doctor began treatment "for safety reasons" because of the patients activities. The patient would potentially put themselves in danger if they engaged in these activities w/o treatment.
The patient missed an appointment, and the doctor decided not to refill the prescription until an appointment was rescheduled. OK, no problem, that sounds fair (see you tomorrow, right?)....NO...The doctor went to their vacation home out of state for three weeks. The patient was cut off. The patient called the doctor to ask about the activity the doctor was concerned about and got no return call. The patient called several times with questions about activities, whether another doctor might see them, etc. Not one phone call was returned. The patient called another doctor on their own, got an appointment that day, and resumed treatment.
So what do you think? Was the doctor arrogant, or incompetent? Both? Or are they just practicing good medicine? Do you think they were justified in doing this to the patient? I don't. Even though I am not the patient, I'm thinking about a complaint...to save others from this doctor. Someone needs to say something. How would you like to be this patient? If this is common practice, it needs to change.
People who have a responsibility to care for others need to have a higher standard.
Oh, one more detail...! A month later, even though the patient canceled the appointment in advance...they got a "No Show" bill for $50!! They called the doctor's office to ask why they were being charged...Can you guess what happened next?
The doctor did not call back. No one from the office called back.
I think a formal complaint is in order my self...I do.
The doctor uses an outside billing service. As a result you get a doctor who will not discuss the situation, and a billing company who (is arms length) just bills, and adds interest each month if payment is not made...(there is no dispute process). They send them to collections after a specified period of time.
Now, that should not even be legal. You at least need a dispute process!
Maybe I should write my congressman...:-)
IDK
posted by Jim at 4:40 PM
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