Patients asked to leave medical practice after filing complaints for excessive billing

Two Hartford Medical Group patients have been told they are no longer welcome at the practice for complaining about fees charged to them above the payments by their insurers for routine physicals, which are 100% covered. Three complaints have been filed with the Attorney General’s office for excessive and unjustified billing; one patient was told that she could come back to the practice if she withdrew her complaint with the AG. The AG’s office is investigating the allegations which they characterized as “potentially unjustified charges added to consumer bills for services that should have been included in the physical or were never provided.” The practice claims that one patient was belligerent and “nasty” about the extra bill. According to their online policies and procedures, Hartford Medical Group charges $35 to patients who don’t show up for appointments and $45 for “administrative fees” related to nonpayment and collections costs.
There is a small but growing national trend of doctors tacking on extra fees to patients, but for services insurance does not pay for including filling out school and camp forms, no-shows, and flat “non-covered benefits” fees.
Ellen Andrews