Is it legal for the surgeon to keep my deposit once he accepts Aetna HMO?

My surgeon sent papers today that mentions a required $750 deposit. I can understand his wanting to make sure he gets something for his services, in case Aetna refused at the last second, but once he receives the money from Aetna, isn't he obligated to take whatever they pay under contract? The paper says my deposit will "be applied to the balance of account after insurance pays. We will refund any overpayment." What does this mean? I had five surgeries since 1999, and the only thing I paid was my $15 copay. Could someone reply that's familiar with the law on this? I feel this is wrong, but there aren't any other surgeons on Aetna's plan locally. Thanks.

We greatly appreciate your interest in helping us build our Q&A database. To discourage vandals from posting garbage, however, we require people to register before posting.

You must be logged in to post an answer. Click here to log in.