ComplaintsforPathGroup

• Initial Complaint

  12/07/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On 8/25/21 I had blood drawn at my doctor's office (***** ******* Family Medicine, **** *****, GA). They include the lab fees in their patient bills, so I never deal with Pathgroup. But each month since, I have been billed by Pathgroup for this lab work, even though the doctor's office paid them directly. The doctor's staff have called Pathgroup three to four times have this cleared up, but I continue to receive bills. When I called, I found Pathgroup has kept a record of my calls to them, but no record of the doctor's office calls, which I know were made. I find that convenient for Pathgroup. There is no reason for me to pay again for lab work which was already paid. There were multiple lab tests done earlier in the year with no problems.

  

  Business response

  12/13/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/12/10) */ Consumer Name: ***** ****** Medical Record Number - XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 08/25/2021 Total Balance: $0.00 BBB Case # - XXXXXXXX This communication is to serve as formal response to BBB case # XXXXXXXX. After researching the consumer's complaint, we have determined that the physician order from ***** ******* Family Medicine indicated to bill the consumer for charges and did not indicate that these charges were to be billed to ***** ******* Family Medicine. PathGroup can only process the physician orders as they are submitted by our clients. Also, per our records, we have not had any calls or interactions with ***** ******* Family Medicine to change this order. We have contacted ***** ******* Family Medicine and have now confirmed that this order should have indicated not to bill the consumer and was an error on their behalf. We have corrected the consumers financial responsibility for this invoice to reflect $0.00 due. We apologize for this inconvenience to the consumer however PathGroup submitted the order just as it was received from the physician's office. Consumer Response /* (2000, 7, 2021/12/10) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.) I appreciate Pathgroup taking the steps to look into this, call the medical practice and clear the account. The problem seems to be in their customer service dept since they kept no record of the medical office's three calls asking them to make this change, and the rep I spoke with was not interested in looking into itand disconnected our call while I was speaking. I think that dept may need some re-training. I'm very pleased with the response once I took this step to get around the customer service dept. Thank you BBB for potentially saving my credit as I'm sure collections would have been the next step.

• Initial Complaint

  12/04/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I received a random bill from Path Group, nothing in the bill about what it is, just a dollar amount. We had never heard of this place or had any dealings with them. We told our daughter about it and she googled and found out it was a lab. I'm on full VA benefits and should never be billed for anything medical. I called the number and they asked all this personal information, which I did not provide to some company I've never heard of. They then informed me no one was available. My daughter looked them up and was shocked to see the Better Business Bureau had 26 complaints about billing and collections practices, and the BBB still has them rated as an accredited company. Plus when you Google them they have 1 star reviews all saying billing and collections issues. I almost paid this bill then realized I didn't have a clue what it was, there is no way it is a valid bill since I am a Vietnam vet on full veteran's disability. I should not be getting a bill, and I am paranoid after reading all of these complaints that they will try to send me to collections. I shouldn't have to be fighting with this. I thought the BBB was more on top of things than this.

  

  Business response

  12/20/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/12/07) */ Consumers Name: ***** **** Account Number: XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 02/28/2021 Total Charges: $121.86 Case # XXXXXXXX The communication is to serve as formal response to the above referenced case number. After researching the consumer's complaint, it has been determined that the lab charges are a result of the consumer's visit to ******** Hospital on 02/28/2021. The ordering physician for this date of service is Dr. ***** ***********. PathGroup was provided the correct health insurance carrier information. However, the consumer's insurance carrier has rejected the claim because an authorization is required per their medical policy but PathGroup was not provided the authorization number. PathGroup needs to work with the consumer to gather information required to complete the authorization process. We apologize for the consumer's experience when calling our office. However to protect the consumer's health and insurance information, PathGroup require that validation of a patient's demographic information must be obtained before releasing any personal health information over the phone. It is our hope that this response will provide the consumer with enough information to feel comfortable calling our office to discuss how we can assist them with getting this claim adjudicated by their health insurance carrier. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2021/12/09) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) The response mentions "insurance carrier." however, the patient, ***** ****, is on full Veteran's benefits. They did outsource him to the doctor mentioned for a back surgery, however being on full Veteran's benefits means he should never receive a bill for anything medical, and Path Group should be working with the VA to get this taken care of, not the patient. We have already received a collections call from Path Group in which we provided this information as well, yet we are still getting these bills. This is the only company that we have ever worked with on things outsourced from the VA that we have had this issue with, thankfully most companies treat veterans better than this. We would normally not report this kind of thing through the BBB, however seeing all of the complaints Path Group already has concerning these Billing and Collections we are shocked anyone still uses them. If you need more information on the authorization, I'd reach out to the doctor's office who the VA outsourced to. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2021/12/13) */ This communication is to serve as formal response to the consumer for case # XXXXXXXX. We were able to contact the consumer via email and they provided the required authorization number to properly file this claim. We also were able to contact the consumer's insurance carrier to confirm we have all of the requirements to submit a claim for adjudication. We appreciate the cooperation from the consumer in assisting our company in resolving this matter and we anticipate that this issue will be resolved.

• Initial Complaint

  11/29/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I received multiple bill statements from this company in 2020 as well as letter from a collection company charging me for the same services. I immediately called to update my insurance information, according to them, my doctor didn't provide them with my insurance. Ok, no big deal but very strange how this happens (I've worked in the medical field for more than 15 years). Pathgroup reassured me they will submit the claim to my insurance company which happened to be Medicaid. 2 weeks later I call back to make sure claim was submitted, again I was reassured that the claim was sent and to dispose of the bill. Fast forward 1.5 years later and now I have a collection from them for that very same claim. I am in the process of closing on my home and this just pops up out of nowhere. I signed up for e-statements and I never received one. When I called a few days ago regarding this matter the representative was extremely unprofessional telling me all kinds of erroneous information, she mentioned my insurance was out of network when their website mentions that they take all insurances. She informed me that she would contact the collection company and send me proof that it was an error. I am currently still waiting for this to happen.

  

  Business response

  12/08/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/12/01) */ Consumer Name: ******* ***** DOS 08/23/19 MRN XXXXXXXX Balance Due= $0 Case #: XXXXXXXX This communication is to serve as a formal response to case number XXXXXXXX. After researching the consumer's complaint, it was determined that the consumer did in fact call to provide health insurance coverage on 7/20/2020 after receiving notice that their account had been recently placed with our collection agency partner. At that time, a request was sent to our collection agency partner to close the account and to remove any references to this debt from their credit report. We have confirmed that the account was in fact closed with the agency at that time however it appears that the agency did not remove the listing from the consumers credit report as requested. The consumer contacted our office on 11/26/21 to request the balance be removed from their credit report. PathGroup was escalated the request to the collection agency on 11/29/2021 with high importance. We have confirmed that the request to remove all references to this account from the consumer's credit report has been submitted and can take up to two weeks to be completely expunged from the consumer's credit report.

• Initial Complaint

  10/11/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Received a call a couple months ago from a collection agency for a medical bill I never received. The agent was not able to tell what the procedure was for or if they had billed my insurance. She took my insurance information to see if a claim had been filled. She said I would be hearing something back from the company. I made sure she had my correct address and phone number. Today I received a second call from a collection agency, still have not received a bill and have no idea if claim was ever filed with my insurance. At this point, I paid the $124.76 they say I owe to avoid any negative information on my credit report.

  

  Business response

  10/25/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/10/18) */ Consumer Name: ******** D. ****** Medical Record Number: XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 2/23/2021 Original Charges: $1157.00 Insurance Payments / Adjustments: $630.39 paid / $401.85 contractual adjustment Current Balance: $0.00 Case Number: XXXXXXXX Statement Dates: 3/24/2021, 4/21/2021 & 5/19/2021 This communication is to serve as formal response to case number XXXXXXXX received 10/11/2021. After reviewing the consumer's complaint, it was determined that the collection agency partner only provided the CPT code to the consumer but could not inform the consumer any additional details. The agency partner did confirm that they provided the consumer's health insurance coverage information back to our office to confirm we had the correct health insurance carrier and that they had adjudicated the claim correctly and our office confirmed that the consumer's health insurance carrier had in fact processed the claim and the remaining balance was the patient responsibility. We attempted to contact the consumer on 10/15/2021 to discuss what we have done/doing but had to leave a message. We are addressing any opportunities discovered in this research to better serve and provide valuable information to our consumers.

• Initial Complaint

  09/06/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have received 2 different bills from debt collectors for Associated Pathologists LLC. My complaint is that, they do not send you a bill. They just turn you over for collections. I pay my bills and I believe in paying them on time. This really rubs me the wrong way to be turned over for collections when I have not received a bill. I have no ideal what the charges are for. When I spoke with the debt collector she said I was not the only one stating that I never received a bill. This is not fair. They are not giving us a fair chance to pay them. I want to see what I am being charged for. I have no idea what I am paying for and why I am being billed.

  

  Business response

  09/16/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/09/09) */ Consumer Name: ************ ******* Medical Record Number: XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 03/02/2021 Original Balance: $982.83 Current Balance: $181.42 Case Number: XXXXXXXX This communication is to serve as formal response to case number XXXXXXXX received 09/08/2021. After researching the consumers claim, it was determined that the consumer had received multiple statements for the aforementioned balance. The dates of those statements are: 04/08/2021, 05/04/2021 and 06/01/2021. The consumer contacted our Patient Support Services department on 06/10/2021 and agreed to a payment plan of $100.00 monthly and made the first payment during that call. Also, on this same interaction the consumer enrolled in our electronic statements program for all statement interactions thereafter. The consumer then made payments of $75.00 on 7/7/2021 and $50.00 on 8/10/2021, which were below the payment plan amount that the consumer had agreed to pay, which resulted in default of the payment plan and the consumer's accounts were transitioned to our collection agency partner. We are happy to assist the consumer if additional information is needed regarding the services and charges as initially presented on our patient statement by calling the Patient Support Services department at X-XXX-XXX-XXXX.

• Initial Complaint

  08/28/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Routine once a year physical. My insurance will pay for this. Out of the blue I received an exorbitant bill for lab tests. The invoice shows $0 claim filed, and $0 Insurance payment. The health provider told me everything was covered at time of service, yet I receive this surprise bill for lab tests that are only listed with codes and no description. A threat of sending me to collections forced me to pay this bill, because I am honest and forthright. Seems to be a mistake by them not filing properly, or they just send bills and threats to make honest people pay a bill that is incorrect.

  

  Business response

  09/16/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/09/02) */ Patient name: ****** ****** Medical Record Number: XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 03/24/2021 Invoice XXXXXXXX Total Patient responsibility = $0.00 (Patient paid $444.11) This communication is to serve as a formal response to case number XXXXXXXX. After researching the consumer's complaint, we contacted the consumer's health insurance company to determine if there was an error in processing the claim to cause a higher balance than the consumer was expecting. Per our contact with representative Myrna at the health carrier, all claims processed correctly and there were some charges not covered as part of the consumer's health plan. The representative advised that if the consumer had questions, to contact their health carrier and use reference number AHXXXXXXX.

• Initial Complaint

  08/03/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I received a bill from path group showing that I supposedly had a lab test ordered by ***** ******** who I have never met for the cost of $300. I don't know where this bill came from I don't know why I have it as the only test I had done we're in February and they were done at the office of my rheumatologist. I did not see any other doctors or have any of the lab tests done until around April. I need the situated because it feels very suspicious considering I've never met ***** *********

  

  Business response

  08/13/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/08/09) */ Patient Name: ***** ****** Medical Record Number: XXXXXXXX Date of Service: 03/09/2021 Invoice #: XXXXXXXX Patient Balance: $0.00 Case # XXXXXXXX This communication is to service as a formal response to case # XXXXXXXX. Per our research, the above referenced date of service is a result of a drive through COVID testing visit to ***** ********* ***** However, this was billed to the consumer in error and has been corrected and the consumer has no financial obligation for this visit. We have communicated this to the consumer via email on 08/06/2021. Consumer Response /* (2000, 7, 2021/08/09) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.) The explanation from password to satisfactory and the bill has been fixed so I have no further complaints.

*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. ↩