ComplaintsforSt. Luke's Health System

• Initial Complaint

  04/17/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was charged for surgery when my insurance should have covered it.

  Business response

  04/17/2024

  Please contact our billing office at ***** ******** so we can confirm your identity and review your concerns in further detail.  Due to state and federal privacy laws this matter cannot be discussed on a public forum such as this.

  Customer response

  04/17/2024

   
  ********** ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

   

  I did contact billing was not able to get anywhere.
  
  ********** *** ********

  Business response

  05/01/2024

  While I can empathize with your frustration, the patient and/or their legal representative must contact our billing office directly to complete identity verification prior to disclosing any protected health information.  Please understand that this is a necessary requirement for Saint Luke's Health System, Inc. and its other affiliates and related entities (“Saint Luke’s”) to remain compliant with federal and state privacy laws regarding patient privacy. 
  
  
  
  That said, you will need to call our billing office at (816) 932-5678.  Alternatively, you can contact the ***** ****** ********* ** ***** ******** and request to speak with the Patient Advocate for the facility where services were provided. 
  
  
  
  At this time Saint Luke's considers this BBB complaint resolved and no further responses will be provided.

  Customer response

  05/01/2024

   
  ********** ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I already contacted, please have someone from the higher up’s contact me at ***** *********
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *** ********

• Initial Complaint

  04/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On 11/28/2022 I had a child at St Lukes East hospital. I received a bill for 466.12 on 12/20/22 (Gurarantor number **********). It was promptly paid at negotiated payment of 349.67. 25% off due to paying in full. Confirmation number(******) within a week the bill was pulled back from my insurance company which let another bill for my son come through and that picked up the majority of my max out of pocket which was originally reached with the 466.12 bill that had been retracted. The bill for my son 431.61 (Guarantor number **********) is now about to go to collections after a 30 day moratorium from st lukes. The issue with the bill is my new amount owed for the orginal 466.12 bill is 34.51 which means I over payed the original bill by 315.16 dollars. I am refusing to pay the 431.61 until the 315.16 is credited to my son's account which will leave me owing st lukes 116.45 which I'm willing to pay immediately. There is several notes on both these accounts. My insurance company even spoke to a manager which got the 30 day moratorium however this issue is not being resolved in a timely manner and billing has been less than helpful and my credit is at risk for an error that is out of my control.

  Business response

  04/12/2023

  In accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 Saint Luke’s Health System and its other affiliates and related entities (“Saint Luke’s”) is unable to address this complaint without proper authorization.  Please be advised Saint Luke’s that cannot accept a typed or digital signature as valid authorization as there is no way for us to verify that this was actually completed by the patient or their personal representative.  Further proper authorization must include all HIPAA required components including, but not limited to, a minimum of two patient identifiers, the facility or provider(s) from which information can be released, the person or entity that is authorized to receive the information, a date of service or date range, and a description of the specific information to be disclosed. 
  
  That said, a Saint Luke’s representative will reach out to the patient or their personal representative directly within the next two business days to resolve this matter.

  Customer response

  04/16/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  Better Business Bureau:
  St Lukes has reached out and credited my son's account in the amount of 349.67 and has written off the rest of that bill. Was advised I may get a bill from them in regards to the bill for 466.12 that has now reprocessed to 34.51. I am accepting the company's response however I do feel not enough was done on billings part in the few months leading up to the claim and that it took the legal department to solve this issue. Supervision for billing is almost impossible to get ahold of and they would prefer writing a note to the billing staff instead of talking with you and getting the issues addressed promptly. I hope in the future these issues are addressed as the hospital staff are amazing but the billing department needs some work.  Regards,  ***** ************

• Initial Complaint

  08/15/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On May 27th, 2022, I was involved in a car wreck that sent me to the hospital. After the car wreck, I felt dizzy and nauseous, so my primary care physician told me to go to the emergency room to get everything checked out. I then went to St. Luke's community hospital on **** ******* *** ******* ***** ** *****. Here I spent a total of only two hours getting one CT scan of my neck and head. The results showed I had no damage and was able to leave the hospital. Since the accident, I have been harassed with payment letters and emails (more than 20 of each) from the hospital itself and from ******** ********* *********** ** ****** **** (for some reason, Based in Indiana). I paid ******** ********* *********** ** ****** **** $332.74 for the services of reading the CT scan. I then have been getting emails from St. Lukes's Hospital charging my insurance over $11,000 for ONE CT scan. The average cost of one CT scan is $246 in an outpatient setting, as shown by MDsave. In an ER setting, head and neck CT scan only result in charges of around $1000-$6000 when looking at prices on the N** ****** ****** website. St. Lukes's is charging whatever they want to the insurance company with no fear of retaliation. While this is a systemic problem within the United States, there was no negotiation between my insurance company and St. Luke's hospital. This allows for fraud and scams against customers like myself. I am then double charged for not only paying the hospital and the radiologists to read the CT scan, but I then have to pay a third time to the hospital for them charging me double or triple the price for a head and neck CT scan. Not to mention the separation of charges of a neck and head CT scan is fraudulent itself. The scan consists of X-rays denoting structures of the brain and neck. It is completed as one scan and is read by the radiologists as one scan but is charged twice. I wish to submit a complaint against the hospital to be on record and to possibly be refunded.

  Business response

  08/30/2022

  Attached is our letter of response to Mr. Russ' complain.  Please note that Saint Luke's places a high value on patient privacy; as such, we politely request that the content of both this complaint and our response be kept confidential.

• Initial Complaint

  06/30/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Dear Better Business Bureau, On Friday, April 29th, I could not find a *** or ********* that was advertising Covid+flu tests, so I went to St. Luke's since they said they were in my network. I tripled checked to make sure I was in network, even when I showed my card. When I got to St. Luke's Urgent Care, the nurse insisted I could not have Covid and it was just allergies (as opposed to my explicit request to be tested for Covid and flu); however, I wanted to be tested for Covid and flu because the symptoms felt so similar. The nurse still refused. Several weeks later, with symptoms continuing - sometimes severe - I visited another Urgent Care, and they tested, and I tested positive. St. Luke's insisted I should not have been tested because I had Covid 90 days prior to April 29th, although not 90 days prior to my test a month later at another facility. However, I had tested negative for Covid on April 3rd and 6th, so St. Luke's has to verify (1) if I had a false negative on April 3rd and 6th, or (2) How my new symptoms from April 29th were allergies but turned into Covid later. Now, two months later, I have been speaking with them about charging me for the visit: They did not give me any treatment or testing, and were incorrect about my insurance. I have infected countless people around the state of Missouri, but without test results, I had no idea I was spreading Covid throughout conferences in St. Louis, Kansas City, and Columbia at conferences, colleges, high schools, and middle schools (not to mention churches, stores, and other public places). Furthermore, the Practice says Billing needs to solve this, and Billing says only the Practice can waive the fee. Why should I have to pay for this visit? Thank you for your time and consideration in helping me get this charge waived. If you have any questions or comments for me, you can contact me at *************************** or at ************. Have a great day! Sincerely* *** *******

  Business response

  07/19/2022

  Please see attached response

  I am writing to follow-up with you regarding the complaint made by *** ******* regarding his visit at Saint Luke’s Convenient Care-Barry Road on April 29, 2022.    I have reviewed his concerns with the Nurse Practitioner, ****** *****, who saw Mr. *******, and our billing department.
  
  According to the medical records for this visit, Mr. ******* presented to the Convenient Care on Barry Road on April 29, 2022 with complaints he reported as “chest congestion” and concern for wax in his ears.  He reported that his symptoms began the previous day and had been waxing and waning.  Mr. ******* said that earlier in the day he felt chills and fatigue but at the time of the appointment, he stated he felt his symptoms were resolving.  Mr. ******* had not taken any medications for his symptoms, and he reported he had COVID 2 months prior, and he tested positive for the flu at the beginning of April, 2022.  He reported having seasonal allergies in the past but not every year.  Mr. ******* denied ear pain or drainage but states he noticed ringing in his ears on the morning of the exam, and he said he had decreased hearing on the right.
   
  A physical exam was completed, and cerumen was removed from his right ear canal using lighted curette.  Mr. ******* reported improvement with his hearing after cerumen removal.
  
  Because Mr. ******* stated his fatigue and chills were improved and resolving from earlier in the day, his symptoms appeared consistent with possible seasonal allergies.  Ms. ***** recommended an antihistamine and Flonase to help open his eustachian tubes. Ms. ***** did document that Mr. ******* reported he had COVID two months prior to this visit.   A patient can test positive for COVID on PCR testing for up to 90 days after infection.    The CDC recommends antigen (rapid) testing only for symptomatic patients.  In this case, Mr. ******* was not symptomatic for COVID or flu because his symptoms had resolved, so he was not tested.
  
  As for the allegation that COVID testing was requested but denied, there is nothing in the documentation to show that Mr. ******* requested a COVID or flu test. Ms. ***** will typically discuss her recommendations regarding treatment with her patients, but if a patient specifically asks for certain testing such as flu, COVID, strep, etc., she will almost always perform that testing as she understands that not all patients present the exact same, and she understands that some patients are looking for peace of mind.  It is not Ms. ******* practice to refuse service to patients, regardless of whether they are covered by insurance or not.  
  
  Mr. ******* had an additional complaint about his insurance plan not being in-network for this visit.   While we do our best to identify in-network insurance plans, it is ultimately the patient’s responsibility to know what their insurance requirements are, including which facilities are in-network. However, given the fact this visit was ultimately deemed out of network by Mr. *******’s insurance, as a gesture of good will, we will write off the out-of-pocket balance of $114.
  
  In summary, the care provided to Mr. ******* was medically appropriate.  Ms. ***** would not deny Mr. ******* a COVID or a flu test if he asked for one. 
  
  We thank you for identifying opportunities to improve the care and communication we provide to our patients.  The healthcare professionals at the Convenient Care-Barry Road remain committed to quality patient care.  We appreciate that you have given us a chance to learn from your experience.
  
  Sincerely,
   
  **** *****
  Director, Risk Management
  Saint Luke’s Physician Group
  

  
  

  Customer response

  07/19/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Assumed Answered]
  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  
  

  Ms. ***** did deny me a Covid and flu test. That is why I came in, otherwise - if all I needed was a Covid test - I would have gone into ***. Ms. ***** strategically must have eliminated this fact. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *** *******

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩