ComplaintsforColumbia Asthma & Allergy Clinic

• Initial Complaint

  08/19/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have sent multiple text messages through their provided portal and have left multiple voice mails over the last month trying to address letters I am getting from an unknown party claiming that Columbia Allergy is providing erroneous insurance information. I have done everything in my abilities to establish contact but no one has replied in any manner. As a result, I have not been notified that my treatments are ready even though I had been advised the treatment should have been available at least two weeks ago.

  Business response

  09/16/2024

  I talked to the patient (***) on phone and understood his genuine  concerns related to the communication tool deficiencies and the lack of response he is experiencing. I informed him that I am the *** of the company and will personally work with him and the staff (****** is no longer with the company) to resolve this in high priority basis:

  1. Upgrading communication platform for improve tracking, monitoring and response for our growing volume of patients.

  2. Improve Bottle lab supply management system, communication and turn around time.

  We really appreciate all the feedback that will help us improve the speed and quality of patient care going forward.

  Thanks and best regards,

  ****** ****, COO

• Initial Complaint

  06/05/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have started to receive allergy treatment from Columbia Allergy in ************, I had a scary incident last week where I felt like I was dying from a possible anaphylactic reaction. The clinic said I need a follow up with the doc, great! I requested an in person ASL interpreter to ensure I understand everything since I am Deaf and communicate using American Sign Language. They said I have to bring my own interpreter if I dont want to use their video interpreting service (which is blurry and freezes up so I only catch maybe 20% of information!) Now they have completely ghosted me and are not responding to my questions or messages. I am not receiving my injections today due to concerns about things I dont understand and they are not accommodating to me :(

  Business response

  06/17/2024

  We are reviewing and will get back to you. 

  Customer response

  06/19/2024

   
  Complaint: 21808051
  
  I am rejecting this response because: no resolution came of it, I have also filed a claim with the ********** of ******** I have all the text messages saved via *****, I truly believe this was an ADA ********** I shared contact information to a couple local interpreting agencies for this clinic to reach out & inquire because they are currently contracted with a spoken language agency that is based in the state of *****. There was absolute zero effort on their part. Just absolutely surreal. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

  Business response

  08/02/2024

  We will be reaching out to the patient to schedule an appointment with her and our provider. Please let me know if you need any additional information and if this suffices the closure of the case. 

  Customer response

  08/02/2024

   
  Complaint: 21808051
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I no longer feel safe at your practice and do not want to be seen by a provider there. Way too much time has gone by and this only comes after you are being investigated by the **** Otherwise I probably would have gone ignored. I have a follow up appointment with my primary care physician in a couple weeks regarding this and we are working on a referral to a clinic that is not affiliated with Columbia Allergy. I'm sure you can understand why. 

  I hope that you do not treat your Deaf/HH clients like this in the future-I hope this experience has brought awareness and that you will improve at providing accessible communications to ALL patients and that you will be willing to learn new things about what that looks like; reach out to the appropriate people with questions. As a clinic you are bound by duty to your patients and you truly failed me here. 

  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

• Initial Complaint

  10/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was referred to Columbia Allergy by my doctor at Providence for a skin allergy test. I was quoted by Columbia Allergy the procedure would cost just over $300 and I told them I can't afford that. The woman over the phone said she can work with the system to make it cheaper, and was able to cut it down by 50%, so I said yes to moving forward with the procedure.When I arrived and paid for the test, I (an adult) was placed into a room that resembled a small office with children's toys everywhere. The two nurses helping with my skin ***** tests said to each other "let's race to see who can do the most tests the fastest" and then literally started jabbing me extremely quickly on either arm to see who could finish first. I was appalled by this, though let it go. The skin test was inconclusive and I was told I need to do a blood test. The doctor prescribed me prednisone since I was having reactions, and after receiving my blood test, was told it was inconclusive as well, since I was on prednisone. So, I had to take ANOTHER blood test though the doctor PRESCRIBED me those pills?Fast forward 18 months later, I am constantly receiving bills for 1) costs I already paid for and 2) am being told I owe the difference on the skin ***** tests from the original $300+ price. I asked why I owe that when I was told they lowered the cost for me and why they would lie about something like that, and they told me they do not know but that I owe the money. Every time I call Columbia's office or reach out online to understand more, no answer. The phone numbers are constantly changing to contact, and the people I have been talking to on the phone have been so incredibly unprofessional, I believe that Columbia Allergy has been sold off to a fraud scheme or there are scammers operating under the aegis of Columbia Allergy. This is an urgent problem as this is within the healthcare system and Columbia has demonstrated their lack of competency when it comes to being a healthcare provider.

  Business response

  11/02/2023

  Hello, 

   

  We are reviewing and will get back to you shortly. 

• Initial Complaint

  04/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  It is nearly impossible to reach somebody in the billing department. They don't send regular billing statements, with many months passing before having to reach out to them for a bill. They do not answer the phone and rely on a messaging system to handle calls. Nobody calls you back, unless you inundate them with messages. I have been waiting for a call back for a month. I tried calling today and their phone lines don't work any longer. When you make a payment they don't reflect that on your bills so you have no idea where your money went. They do not process services through your insurer in a timely matter; for example I paid a $40 copay for an appointment in October at the time of the appointment, and I am just now, five months later receiving a bill for that appointment (for which I paid in October, the same day of my appointment). I have a flex spend account that requires the money be used for the appropriate year, and their billing is so unorganized and barely functioning that they are making it hard for me to use my FSA. I just would really like to get a regular and accurate billing statement, so that I can be sure that what I'm paying is correct. I keep getting billed for the same days over and over. If there isn't a billing scam going on then they are severely incompetent with something that is so important.

  Business response

  05/31/2023

  We are in receipt of the attached complaint. 
  
  Unfortunately we are short-staffed on billing employees. We are working on resolving this issue. We will reach out to the patient filing the complaint and will resolve it with her ASAP.  Please let us know if there are any other resolution outcomes that are expected. 
  
  
  
  -- 
  Thanks
  
  *****************************
  
  
  P: ************ 
  F: ************
  ********** Clinics
  
  Columbia Asthma and Allergy Clinic
  www.ColumbiaAllergy.com
  Experience - Compassion - Results

  Customer response

  06/06/2023

   
  Complaint: 19901834
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  What ******************** suggests is just more of the same and does nothing to fix the issues that Ive had. The billing department has been understaffed for well over a year (thats how long Ive been dealing with billing issues), and clearly is not a priority. I have not heard from the company since their response to my complaint, and I do not have faith that I will be contacted in a timely matter. In addition, I am still not receiving regular billing statements. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  JM

  Business response

  06/21/2023

  Hi *****,
  We are sorry your experience with our billing department has been less than stellar. We are constantly working to improve our business processes and occasionally this leads to issues such as claims being sent late. A member of our billing team has reached out to resolve this issue. Thank you for bringing this to our attention, we greatly appreciate the feedback. 
  

  Customer response

  06/24/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:

  After this company suddenly closed an office location without any notification to patients or staff (really, the staff showed up to find out that the office closed!) I will no longer be giving them my business. Columbia Allergy is a complete joke of a company, which is scary considering its healthcare. Therefore, I will accept their inadequate response and move on. Good riddance!
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

*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. ↩