For years now I have attempted to expose rip-offs being perpetrated against Medicare Recipients by Las Vegas doctors’ offices – the most recent is an ophthalmologist who charges his patients a $10.00 to $30.00 fee supposedly for “taking a picture of the back of the eye.”
(Personally, if I were still in business I would like to be able to make extra income from my customers, but it just isn’t right, so I never did it.)
I contacted my insurance company who called the doctor’s office and it was discovered that they were not allowed to charge this or any fee as we have no charge to pay when going to a plan specialist, but they had done this to who knows how many thousands of other unsuspecting patients who each would need to file a complaint despite the fact that I had caught them in the act.
Most importantly, we all get a monthly Explanation of Benefits (EOB’s) from our insurance carriers that shows us the amounts we are responsible for, and it failed to show any fee that we were responsible for from this doctor.
So make sure you read your EOB’s and understand what you are actually responsible to pay and pay no more. And if you have been overcharged speak out – call your insurance company with questions.
That’s what they’re there for, and as Sister Joan Sullivan, my high school physics teacher used to say: the only dumb question is the one you don’t ask!
