Question:
Am I in charge of my insurance or is the nurse at the doctors office?
I AM SOOO FRUSTRATED RIGHT NOW....I CALLED THE DOCTORS OFFICE TO SEE IF THEY HAD TURNED IN MY PAPERWORK TO MY INSURANCE COMPANY AND THE NURSE RUDELY SAID, " WE DISTINCTLY TOLD YOU THAT WE WILL TAKE CARE OF THIS AND IT WILL TAKE 6 WEEKS....IF YOU CALL YOUR INSURANCE CUSTOMER CARE LINE THEY WONT KNOW DIDLEY ABOUT ANYTHING, WE SEND THE PAPERWORK TO A SPECIAL DIVISION OF YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY..." THEN I ASKED IF I COULD HAVE A FAX # OR SOMETHING TO CONTACT THEM AND JUST ASK IF THEY HAVE RECIEVED THE PAPERWORK AND SHE SAID NO! GRRRRRRRRRRRR.....IVE HEARD SO SO MANY STORIES ABOUT PAPERWORK DISAPPEARING INTO OUTER SPACE......WHAT SHOULD I DO?? BE PATIENT AND WAIT SIX WEEKS AND HOPE EVERYTHING WAS DONE PROPERLY OR TAKE CHARGE OF THE INSURANCE (THAT I PAY FOR)? — Karen W. (posted on October 8, 2002)
October 8, 2002
You have every right to call the insurance company to check on the status
of your paper work, do not let a rude clerical worker make you feel like
you are not allowed to contact your insurance that you pay for. If she
continues to be rude I would ask nicely and then demand to speak to your
surgeon about her behaviours.
— Melody M.
October 8, 2002
You are. By the way, one of the reasons I changed my original surgeon was
becasue of his inept and non-compassionate office staff. There is no
excuse for rudeness. Especially not when the surgeon is going to make a
mint off of you.
— PaulaM
October 8, 2002
I found out who the person was at my insurance agency (SuperMed Plus of
Ohio) who was going to be making the decisions on my case. I got on a first
name basis with her actually, and when the decision came through that the
insurance company was going to pay for it, she called me personally at home
to explain what would happen next. I encourage you to contact your
insurance company and get someone who will talk to you like a human being,
not a disembodied voice at the other end of a phone line. And do think
about looking for other surgeons--mine was great, and his staff was too.
— Carla C.
October 8, 2002
Most physicians offices take care of the paperwork because they will have
to submit it anyway. Some patients call their insurance to find out what
is needed for approval but bottom line is it always goes back to the
doctor's office needing to submit the paperwork with the medical profile,
tests, etc. I also had a surgeon's office staff like yours, they acted
like they were doing me a favor. I finally asked for the phone number they
had called at my insurance company, then called myself, to be told they had
no record of a request on my behalf. I ended up getting my PCP and
Orthopedist to submit records on my behalf, then calling my surgeon's
office at least a dozen times (they never called back and one person told
me "If you don't like the way we do things here, you can go somewhere
else.") I finally wrote a "Personal and Confidential"
letter to the surgeon; things moved more quickly after that. In the end, I
switched surgeons because I was still going to have to deal with these
people after the surgery and didn't feel it was worth it. Good luck to
you.
— Arlene S.
October 8, 2002
You, you , you are in charge of anything to do with your surgery.If that
lady gives you any more lip, ask to speak to her supervisor. If that
doesn't help, ask to have the surgeon call you ASAP. And if they don't like
it, I would find another doctor quickly. I had a bad experience with a
surgeon's office too and have changed surgeons. I am very pleased with the
response I have received from Dr. Martin's bariatric assistant Anne. Good
luck!
— LM O.
October 8, 2002
Again Karen, they are giving you the bull! I would ask to speak to the
supervisor and if I didn't get satisfaction I would ask to speak with that
persons supervisor and go to the top until I got satisfaction. Everyone
answers to someone. You need to get tough and TELL her that YOU have every
right to know exactly what is going on with your precertification. My
surgery was approved in 2 days, but it took too long for them to get the
paper work there. I called daily until it went in. Then I called the ins
company to make sure it was received. Also when I had plastic surgery,
called and found the contact person at the insurance company. I have a
"special division" also being on a Cobra plan. There is still
someone that can answer your questions. It's YOUR insurance and your life,
not hers, she sounds controling and I personally wouldn't put up with it.
Get tough!
— ZZ S.
October 9, 2002
Last I checked, I payed for my insurance, not the surgeon's office or his
staff. They could be a little more compassionate considering your insurance
money is paying her salary.
— J. W.
October 9, 2002
I would be livid if I recieved that haughty of a response from someone I
was trusting with the paperwork. I called my insurance company and made
sure they got the paperwork. I called a week later to check on the review
progress, and they told me it had been approved. The approval letter was in
the mail. I say call your insurance yourself, and find out if they have
your file. Calling your insurance won't push any more buttons in the
Doctors' office, and maybe you will know before them when you are approved.
Also, You need people that are working for you, because sometime it takes
another letter to get a good result.
— Tricia J.
October 9, 2002
You not only pay for your insurance but you also pay highly for your
surgeon and his staff. You have the right to call your insurer and your
physicians office whenever you care too! Physicians and insurance
companies are wealthy due to customers and patients. They can be rude as
hell but it's still YOUR insurance, YOUR money and YOUR time! I called my
insurer every day until I got an answer. It may be annoying to them but we
are paying for these services! She was in the wrong by telling you that
you could not have the fax or phone number--no excuse for rude,
disrespectful behavior!
— jenn2002
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