A Viewer Writes: Note to Veterans

Joe,

Just wanting to let fellow veterans be aware, and your blog seems the best way to do that.

I am a retired veteran and because Salisbury is a quite a distance from the Baltimore VA Hospital, I as well as many others on the Eastern Shore are eligible for the Veterans Choice Program which allows Veterans to be seen by local doctors. I am reminding all Vets using this program to maintain "situational awareness" in regards to any billing or other dealings with this program and the providers offices.

My situation is this. I had an appointment/office visit back in May in Seaford Delaware to see a provider. That provider has for the last 3 months, sent me a bill which they are NOT supposed to do, it is actually a breach of their contract between the doctors offices and the VA/Veterans Choice program. The bill is supposed to be going directly to the VA/Veterans Choice program. I have been on the phone today with Healthnet Government Services (the organization who arranges the appointments) discussing this situation. Also, within the last 3 months I have sent letters and copies of the bills to the provider's billing address and to the Veterans Choice program, and nothing has been paid. And then on July 22, I received another bill. According to Healthnet, there are other veterans using this same provider in this same situation. And it may be happening with other providers as well. So all in all, the provider has not fulfilled their side of the contract correctly.

Also, I have been trying to call the phone number on the bill several times today already and no one answers the phone. I am withholding the name of the provider because I am going to call the office directly and see if I can help straighten out the situation first. If that flops, and this situation grows even more, then I will post the name.

So, all this to say, Vets, don't let your guard down when it comes to billing. Be aware if you get a bill in the mail, something went awry. My concern is that my non-payment will soon reflect on my credit and or I may start getting calls from collections. Hopefully, my situation will be resolved soon.

Joe,

In continuation of the previous email, I contacted the above mentioned doctors billing department and only because of the letter I had sent them before, did they straighten things out and get the bill sent to the VA on July 20th. So, my next step is to call the claims department and see if they have received and paid the bill, I'll do that in a few days.