Saint Francis Medical Partners - Wolf River

In short, I do not recommend this medical office. No need to go through a similar experience to what I had. Went in for an annual checkup and was charged for something completely different. I attempted to get it corrected as I thought it was obviously a mistake and was disappointed at every level dealing with the bureaucratic system they have in place. A total waste of time given the simplistic and correct solution. To provide detail, I had a yearly checkup and even had my bloodwork done previously to my visit so I could discuss with the doctor during my check up. During my visit I discussed my health in general, I also was able to ask questions about my bloodwork since I already had the results prior to the appointment. During the visit I discussed some allergies I’ve been having and was referred to allergist. There were no diagnoses, testing, prescriptions provided or follow up visits scheduled, only a recommendation that I should visit an allergist. After receiving my bill,… it listed that I was seen as an outpatient and when calling the billing department I was advised this is one of the more expensive ways to be seen. I explained that I went in for an annual checkup and they agreed to send back to the office for recoding. After not hearing anything back for several weeks I reached out again requesting to speak with the practice manager to ensure this would be corrected. After speaking with the practice manager she explained that although it was coded incorrectly, that since I spoke about an allergy I will be charged for the annual check up and an allergy visit as well. She further explains the policy is posted in the room about how yearly checkups don’t cover health issues you may have and made it sound like she’s helping me out by just charging the additional allergy visit along with my checkup. She also said that I spent 50 minutes with the doctor, it was under 25 minutes. This is such a red flag in itself that the amount of time was extremely exaggerated in an attempt to make me feel I spent too much time with the doctor. I think I understand what’s going on, it was not a typical 10 minute visit since I already had my bloodwork and was able to inquire about the results. Very deceptive and unfair not to advise a patient about this policy when the patient expects to speak about current health issues with the doctor during an annual checkup. At the very least, clinics should be required to be explain during checkin if you have an annual checkup that you’re not allowed to discuss health related issues without incurring additional charges especially if there is not testing or additional appointments needed. At any rate, a company that charges services that are not transparent should not be trusted with your health. Even with the current state of our healthcare this is a surprise that any company would risk alienating their customers over what would appear to be a straightforward ethical practice. Additionally today I received a voice mail from the billing department that they are leaving the coding as it was originally charged as an outpatient?? $400+ dollars for an outpatient charge for what was an annual checkup. So unethical.