I was receiving care at the Allina Women's Medical Clinic in Coon Rapids. I stopped going here and transferred to the Champlin clinic due to poor service, communication and incorrect information given by the staff resulting in over a $600 bill that I was told would be covered by insurance.
I am pregnant and prior to my 12 week visit I was told if I showed up early for an 8:15 am apt they would get me into the lab right away to drink the diabetic testing stuff so I would not have to wait around an hour after the apt. Upon checking into the front desk 45 minutes early and watching the front desk person hand the orders to the lab tech who walked them back I was called in 5 minutes prior to my apt to drink the syrup. This was only the first issue of this apt. If there was an issue in getting me in early it would have been great for some communication before the apt or during the wait time from the time I checked in at the front desk; there was none during the 40 minutes sitting idle in the waiting room.
The nurse called me back and checked me in and asked me to get into a paper gown. I sat with my husband in the cold room for over 30 minutes, with no word or update from any staff before the doctor came in with a weak apology. All that was needed at this point was some communication from the staff that the doctor was running behind.
This appointment ended by us sitting around after the apt waiting for the lab techs again to call me back to draw blood due to the syrup not being in my system long enough due to the delay before the appointment. Upon leaving the 12 week apt I made my 16 week and 20 week apts. I asked the woman who made these apts for me how many people could go back into the ultra sound room for the 20 week as my husband and I wanted our parents to be there, if possible.
She said 2-3 and suggested that if we wanted more we should make an apt across the street at Mercy Hospital. I asked if it would work the same and if they would charge more? She assured me that because it was my 20 week ultra sound that it would be included the same way as at the clinic. She proceeded to call over to Mercy Hospital to check how many people they would allow; they confirmed 8-9 so she made the 16 week and 20 week doctor apt at the clinic and the 20 week ultra sound apt at Mercy Hospital for me handed me a card with the time.
When I exited my 16 week apt I stopped at the front desk to confirm my 20 week apt as the nurse said she did not see any other apts made during the apt. The woman at the front desk could not find them either she made the 20 week doctor apt and called over to Mercy Hospital to set up the apt over there. She was on hold so I got the number from her and called to make the apt myself as I needed to get to work.
When I got to the 20 week ultra sound apt at Mercy Hospital we found out upon check in that they would only let 2-3 people back at a time. They worked with us and we rotated and made it work, but another disappointment as it was the whole/only reason we made the apt at Mercy Hospital. If we would have known this we would not have made the apt over there but stayed at the clinic.
About a week later I received a bill in the mail from Mercy for almost $600 for the 20 week ultra sound apt I immediately called the billing office asking what was going on and they told me what the bill was for they advised me at this time to call my insurance company. I called the insurance company, they told me because I had the 20 week ultra sound apt at the hospital it is billed differently and there would be a charge or lesser coverage vs being totally covered ($0 expense to my out of pocket) by insurance, like if the ultra sound was done at the clinic. Over the next few weeks I talked multiple times to many people at the Allina Women's Clinic and Mercy Hospital. Mercy Hospital did reduce the bill by 1/3 but the Allina Clinic who created the issue with the woman who made the 16 week apt not telling me to call and check with my insurance, but ill-advising me did nothing.
I then received another bill from Suburban Imaging for the tech portion of the 20 week ultra sound for around $100. I was told pretty much the same thing and blown off again by the Allina Women's Clinic and the clinic's billing employees.
I would have never made the 20 week ultra sound apt at Mercy Hospital if I would have been advised to check with my insurance and found out that the 20 week ultra sound apt was not covered the same as at the clinic. I would have been able to take our parents out to a great dinner for the $700 in bills that are not being charged. If the woman who made the 16 week apt at the Allina Women's Clinic would have not told me misinformation I would not have the almost $700 bill and if I stayed at the clinic for the apt it would have been 100% covered by my insurance.
I have requested the Allina Women's Clinic refund me the almost $700 that I have paid on the two bills due to the misinformation and ill advisement of the person at the front desk at Allina Women's Clinic Coon Rapids. I have paid both bills in order to keep my record clean. That is the only reason the bill has been paid.
0 comments