Alvin Tostig
Recycles dryer sheets
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2015
- Messages
- 61
I've been seeing my cardiologist, who is part of a big practice, annually for 9 years now. I'm very happy with him, although there was a screw-up on a simple surgical procedure when I first met him, which luckily had no long-term impact. He is very highly regarded in his field and takes his time explaining his findings.
So it's been 5 years since my last stress test, and he recommended in March that I get one. In the same building is the stress test center - so they send everyone there - it's a fancy high end place affiliated with a major hospital - and therefore in a hospital setting.
Now, because my medical insurance is on a April 1 to March 30 calendar, I intentionally moved all my medical appointments to March, since my wife and I had reached the max for out-of-pocket expenses for the year, and after that we are basically fully covered (for reasonable costs). So the test would be free or near free. So no problem, my stress test is late-March.
I show up at the stress test center for my scheduled appointment, and wouldn't you know it - the stress test center has no record of my appointment. So I march back to my cardiologists office and they had cancelled my appointment and were sure that they left me a message. The reason, this super-duper stress test center has now ordered the best of the best equipment on the market that only very few hospitals in the US have and my cardiologist recommended that I wait a few weeks until its delivery.
So, a few weeks go by, my cardiologist calls and says there will be a significant delay in the delivery of this equipment - so just go take the nuclear stress test as we originally planned. OK - but now that it's April and I am starting a new medical year with a new deductible - the test would cost me $3600!! I thought that was outrageous, and told both the stress center and cardiologist office that this was unacceptable. Both places apologized, but made no effort, despite constant dialogue, to seek a compromise.
I told the cardiologist office to find another for me - they eventually and reluctantly after much bickering came up with a $3100 and $2500 nuclear test option (another hospital setting and a private doctor). I told them this is still unacceptable.
Finally my cardiologist calls back and recommends another option - a stress echo test - which he says is 99% as effective as the nuclear test. So next door in the super-duper place is $1600 - told him to go to his buddies in the industry and find me a cheaper place - eventually got one for $970 that he recommended.
Now here is the kicker - the $970 place is booked until May 25th!! So, my originally stress test in mid - March will finally be done more than 2 months later!! What a racket. I asked the cardiologist office to send me to the super-duper place for $970 - and they could not do it (I say b.s.). My cardiologist informed me that his assessment on my health is that I am medically fine to wait until late-May as all my tests do not seem to trigger a problem.
I left it to them to still find me a place earlier than May 25th - I even gave them some places that I researched! If they wanted me to take a nuclear stress test in March - I still think waiting until late May to take an echo does not sit well with me.
So it's been 5 years since my last stress test, and he recommended in March that I get one. In the same building is the stress test center - so they send everyone there - it's a fancy high end place affiliated with a major hospital - and therefore in a hospital setting.
Now, because my medical insurance is on a April 1 to March 30 calendar, I intentionally moved all my medical appointments to March, since my wife and I had reached the max for out-of-pocket expenses for the year, and after that we are basically fully covered (for reasonable costs). So the test would be free or near free. So no problem, my stress test is late-March.
I show up at the stress test center for my scheduled appointment, and wouldn't you know it - the stress test center has no record of my appointment. So I march back to my cardiologists office and they had cancelled my appointment and were sure that they left me a message. The reason, this super-duper stress test center has now ordered the best of the best equipment on the market that only very few hospitals in the US have and my cardiologist recommended that I wait a few weeks until its delivery.
So, a few weeks go by, my cardiologist calls and says there will be a significant delay in the delivery of this equipment - so just go take the nuclear stress test as we originally planned. OK - but now that it's April and I am starting a new medical year with a new deductible - the test would cost me $3600!! I thought that was outrageous, and told both the stress center and cardiologist office that this was unacceptable. Both places apologized, but made no effort, despite constant dialogue, to seek a compromise.
I told the cardiologist office to find another for me - they eventually and reluctantly after much bickering came up with a $3100 and $2500 nuclear test option (another hospital setting and a private doctor). I told them this is still unacceptable.
Finally my cardiologist calls back and recommends another option - a stress echo test - which he says is 99% as effective as the nuclear test. So next door in the super-duper place is $1600 - told him to go to his buddies in the industry and find me a cheaper place - eventually got one for $970 that he recommended.
Now here is the kicker - the $970 place is booked until May 25th!! So, my originally stress test in mid - March will finally be done more than 2 months later!! What a racket. I asked the cardiologist office to send me to the super-duper place for $970 - and they could not do it (I say b.s.). My cardiologist informed me that his assessment on my health is that I am medically fine to wait until late-May as all my tests do not seem to trigger a problem.
I left it to them to still find me a place earlier than May 25th - I even gave them some places that I researched! If they wanted me to take a nuclear stress test in March - I still think waiting until late May to take an echo does not sit well with me.