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I have been trying to contact patient relations fo...

I have been trying to contact patient relations for over two weeks now in regards to Dr. Silvers office inappropriately billing me and upcoding me for services I never had renderred.

On an attempt to reach Patient Relations 15 and 21 days after my filed dispute and complaint, I have received no response from them or the CMO handling my case.

The office has changed the bill from "exam" to "consult". One can find more information on my experience online with the Better Business Bureau.

The office says they will remove the lab bills (for labs I never had) if I pay them their adjusted "Consult" office bill. LabCorp is holding the bill until we find a resolution.

The new code Dr. Silvers is billing for is CPT code 99243. After insurance, this is $10 less than what they previously charged after weeks of disputing.

It is incorrect to charge me for CPT 99243 when I was not in consultation with Dr. Silvers for more than a few minutes. 99243 reflects a detailed examination, a detailed medical history and medical decision making which should take place within a 40 minute time frame. To charge for, and claim Dr. Silvers can complete a detailed exam and detailed history in 3 minutes is wrong.

In addition, the office is failing to release my medical records in which I requested by notarized and certified mail. It is a violation not to release medical records at the patient's request in the way the release was requested.

I would like to confirm that this is not a complaint against my insurance for not covering their services. I have no dispute with my insurance. My dispute is with this office incorrectly coding and billing me for services never rendered.

I will not resolve my complaint until the following three things take place:

1. The lab charges are completely dropped. This should have already taken place in your change from "exam" to "consult" and the bills should have never existed in the first place as I never had labwork done in your office.

2. My medical records are released to me by mail, as I requested by notarized and certified mail. According to legal counsel, you are obligated to meet me on this request and I should not have to go to your office to retrieve my medical records.

3. Bill me the correct "consult" time. If it is any more than the lowest amount of time necessary for a "consult" and doesn't reflect the appropriate services I had rendered, I will again dispute the bill.

If the office meets my requests, I will remove my complaint from BBB as and other businesses in which I have sent my complaints, and upon review of a new (and appropriately coded bill) I will consider moving forward with payment. Should the office be unable to find a code that reflects my three-minute consultation without medical history or exam, the office could drop the charges and I will withdraw my complaints. As Mount Sinai is responsible for the doctors within their building, this review will be posted here and will not be removed until my requests are met.

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