I will just share the letter I wrote to Dr. Griffith. It explains the experience. When having to deal with the insurance company... She wanted to charge us for that too. We were appealing many of the company's decisions. Four other docs responded to the physicians calling without charge. Again, Dr. Griffith wanted our credit card to pay our outstanding bill which was huge... And you will see why. When I told her that I would leave the Neurology aspect out of the appeal and explain to the insurance company our problems with Dr. Griffith's charges as well as send in her detailed billing to let them decide... She was on the phone with them as fast as lightening. I am a registered nurse and have never seen anything like it.
I will also say that when confronting Dr. Griffith she told me I was the only one who had made complaints like these. I have found this to be very untrue. Some further behavior on her part coupled with that has made me question her integrity.
Dear Dr. Griffith,
I would like to begin my letter by letting you know that I am writing this with respect for you both as a person and a dedicated professional. Many times I have sat down to write this letter only to stop, as it is upsetting to me. However, I believe it is important for me to do so if we are to continue to have a relationship with you as a care provider for our son.
Originally when we came to see you, in Summer our appointment was simply to review Fintans MRI. This was at the request of Dr. Arthur Krigsman prior to Fintans gastrointestinal appointment. Maybe it is for this reason that I do not have a contract signed with how billing is done through your office. Or perhaps I simply did not retain a copy, as I am unable to locate this in my records. During our appointment you had many concerns for Fintan, I believe rightfully so, considering his multiple health issues and severe developmental delay. You were amazing at promptly getting us into UCSFMC for an overnight EEG.
I came to you again in November to discuss Fintans multiple nutritional problems, and had you help me formulate custom made supplements for him. I also brought his second MRI from UCDMC for you to read. You had some concerns about those findings.
Fintans Lyme status was discussed, and you had concerns for his treatment. We both felt it was important to assess whether he had bacterial encephalitis due to Lyme, and possibly begin aggressive IV antibiotic treatment. You were instrumental at getting Fintan in for a lumbar puncture, central line placement, and spect scan. We are very grateful to you for accomplishing these things for our son.
That brings me to the purpose of my letter. As I said, we are very grateful for the services you provided. However, I have some serious concerns with how the billing is done. I will try to present this to you in the kindest way possible because I think it is not only important for my family but for all the families you are treating.
It is very hard to get services approved for children diagnosed with Autism. Throw Lyme into the mix, and you have doubled the expense. Families under these circumstances usually are financially drained. Some of us are losing homes and going further into debt trying to provide the best care we can for our children.
When my husband brought your itemized billing for me to review, about six weeks ago, I was stunned by some of the charges. I would like to present just a few of them to you here. If you would like to discuss my concerns in the future I would be glad to do so.
First I would like to address Fintans Lyme treatment. I know at one meeting we both agreed that Dr. Ginger Savely was our Lyme practitioner, and would be treating Fintans illness. You did order actigall, and I had you write orders for Fintans abdominal ultrasounds as Dr. Savely is out of the area quite often. On two occasions you had me come into your office to have you read the ultrasound cd. I am confused as to why we would have the added expense of reading the ultrasound again when it comes with a report.
I gave you permission to discuss Fintans antibiotic choice with other physicians. Perhaps this is a misunderstanding on my part, but I thought it was to give you a better understanding of treating Lyme disease. Dr. Savely was making the decision regarding antibiotic treatment.
On 2/03/09 a phone charge for 20 minutes was made which included a phone call to Dr. Savely regarding antibiotic choice. There is a 12 minute phone call to Dr. Jones on 2/11/09. Another 18 minute call to Dr. Jones on 2/25/09. On 2/09/09 I was charged for 21 minutes of preparation time to talk to Dr. Jones and Pietrucha regarding IV choice. I was not charged by Dr. Savely or Dr. Jones for their time consulting with you regarding Fintan.
You asked me for my labs. Again I believed this was just out of interest for your learning, as Dr. Savely is my Lyme practitioner. On 2/11/09 a 21 minutes charge that includes reviewing my labs, and another phone call to Dr. Jones. I dont understand charging me for reading my labs. My lab results would not change the course of Fintans care. It may be interesting, but was not something we needed you to review for us.
Even if you were treating Fintans Lyme I believe the time spent calling around and researching antibiotic choice is excessive. Patients are coming to you for your knowledge as an expert in the field. Your patients should not be directly funding the expansion of your knowledge base.
There are additional concerns I have with the billing. Many of these charges, I believe, are for things that could be done by a secretary or I would have been quite capable of myself. I dont believe it is appropriate to charge me minutes at 375 dollars an hour to perform these tasks. I will give some examples. All throughout the billing we are charged many times for faxes being made back and forth. There are so many of them I am confused as to whether the information being provided to others is redundant.
On 1/22/09 there is a call for 5 minutes to Clongen asking about volume amounts for tests. There is another call on the same day to Clongen regarding Fed Ex mailing for 3 minutes. On 1/22/09 another call was made to CPMC to get a Fed Ex tracking number to Clongen lasting 8 minutes. The same day another call was made to get a Fed Ex tracking number for 3 minutes.
Dr. Griffith, on that day alone we will be paying you over 100 dollars for checking Fed ex numbers. This may not seem like a big deal to you, but for me it is a new pair of shoes for every single one of my children. Quite simply, I do not believe any patient should be charged Dr. S wages for these services.
We have spent 70,000 dollars in medical care and therapy for Fintan over the past year that has not been reimbursed by the insurance company. For some this is an entire income for a family with dual earners. Because of this our family has been extremely financially strained. My husband has had to be careful and creative about paying the bills. We have had our power turned off several times, and frequently have a difficult time making ends meet. I say this knowing what our income is, and it is above average. I know so many families who are affected with autism. Honestly Dr. Griffith I just cant recommend that one of my friends take their child to your office. Despite the fact that they may get genuine and concerned care, for many your billing would send the average earner into financial despair.
I have thought long and hard about writing this letter. Many times I hesitated because I thought perhaps this type of billing is standard practice. Having worked as a nurse I have doctor friends in private practice. To make sure I was not too off base I asked the opinion of a couple of my doctor friends and other parents of autistic children. Both groups had never heard of charging for these types of phone calls and faxes. They consider these services to be included in the fee of the visit.
If I truly believed that you were not a good person and were out to take advantage of families in desperate situation I would just end our relationship. I dont believe this to be the case. I wanted to be honest with you, and have the air cleared with no hard feelings. As well, being a parent dealing with such a sick child I really have empathy for others in our situation. I am hoping for the sake of your patients you will take a look at your billing practices so your patients are not being billed excessively.
Thank you
0 comments