Charlie Fattore

Review of Houston Methodist

I'm a healthy 42-year old man who recently went to...

I'm a healthy 42-year old man who recently went to my neighborhood Methodist Hospital Outpatient Emergency Room (in Missouri City, near Sienna Plantation) around 11 pm one evening because I fainted unexpectedly, after getting off my sofa (while walking to the bathroom). I quickly recovered afterward and drove myself to the nearby clinic. I requested the service of speaking with a doctor to see what caused me to faint. The doctor performed some routine test and checked my vitals. She said I needed to perform a CAT (CT) scan in order to determine a potential cause for my issue. After reviewing the results of the CT scan, she told me I needed to have further tests performed at the main Sugar Land Hospital; however, a bed wouldn't be available till around 4 am in the morning. I specifically asked her if it was absolutely necessary for me to go through this extent since every test she performed came out negative. She stated, "You have insurance, right?" I responded, "yes, but I don't feel it was necessary to get more tests performed because I feel fine and I'm scared about receiving a large medical bill later on." She then responded, "not to worry, the reason you have insurance is to cover you in these instances." She then disappeared. After waiting several hours, an ambulance team showed up to take me to the main hospital. The ambulance arrived at the Methodist Sugar Land Hospital around 4 am and a nurse carted me to my room. She told me to get some rest because the doctor won't be able to see you until 1 pm later that afternoon. When the doctor finally arrived to my room she told me they needed to run several tests to determine what caused me to faint. The test she ordered included an MRI, ultrasound, and several others. The last test was performed around 4pm in the afternoon. Then, another doctor returned to my room and stated all of my test came out negative and I was free to go after the paperwork was completed. By 6 pm, I was discharged from the hospital. A month later I started receiving bills from various sources that totaled my out-of-pocket expenses to around $5,000. The actual bill I received from the Sugar Land Hospital stated I was being charged $27,000 for 1-day stay in the hospital, which was not acuate since I was only in the hospital from 4 am to 6 pm. The majority of my time was spent waiting on the doctor to show up. A few weeks later, I also received other bills from the ambulance provider, the radiology company and the outpatient ER clinic. This large financial expense (that I'm now obligated to pay) was exactly what I was trying to avoid if the first place because it wasn't absolutely necessary for them to perform the number tests that were ordered by their doctors. I entrusted their integratey to do what was right and I believe they failed at doing so. It's obvious their intentions were to run up my bill, so they (The Methodist Hospital) could file for services that weren't unwarranted (to my insurance provider). This case is a great example of what's wrong in our society and why we need better statues/laws that protect consumers (and insurance providers) from irresponsible and "greedy" healthcare institutions, like The Methodist Hospital.