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I paid out of network expecting timely orthopedic care; what I got was absolutely zero physical exam, a denied MRI, weeks of delay, and a threat to call 911 when I asked for accountability.
I went to see Dr. Pamela Mehta as an out-of-network patient because I was in severe pain in my hip/pelvis area and wanted help quickly. Unfortunately, the visit was one of the most disappointing and unprofessional medical experiences I have had.
Before the appointment, I was asked to get an X-ray. At the visit, Dr. Mehta looked at the X-ray and told me it looked fine. When I pointed to the exact area where I had pain, she seemed unsure whether the issue was my hip, rib, abdomen, intestines, or pelvis. That alone was concerning, but what concerned me most was that there was essentially no physical examination at all. She did not ask me to perform any movements, did not test range of motion, did not ask me to lift my leg, did not examine my gait, and did not physically evaluate the painful area. I explained that the pain felt bone-related and became worse when standing on my left foot, but there was still no meaningful hands-on evaluation.
Instead, she ordered an MRI and recommended ibuprofen. The MRI was then denied by insurance more than once. Based on the denial explanation I received, the medical necessity was not documented adequately, and the clinical reasoning submitted does not appear to have matched my actual symptoms. Weeks later, the issue is still unresolved, and the office seemed unclear about the peer-to-peer process and the status of the authorization.
The whole reason I paid out of network was that I was in serious pain and needed timely, competent care. Instead, I left with no clear diagnosis, no real exam, an MRI request that insurance rejected, and weeks of delay. This is exactly the kind of experience that makes patients lose trust in medical providers: a quick visit, little actual evaluation, an expensive out-of-network bill, and poor follow-through when the authorization fails.
When I later went to the office to ask what was going on, the interaction became even more concerning. I was frustrated, but I was there because I had paid for care and still had no answer. During that office interaction, Dr. Mehta initially said something along the lines of reimbursing me so I would leave. When I responded that yes, I wanted my money back, she immediately changed position and said I would not be reimbursed, then threatened to call 911. To me, that felt retaliatory and punitive, not professional. It came across less like a physician trying to resolve a legitimate patient complaint and more like someone trying to use pressure and intimidation once I challenged the quality of care and asked for a refund.
Based on my experience, this visit raised serious concerns about competency, documentation, follow-through, professionalism, and judgment under pressure. A doctor can have a bad day, but appearing unsure about the source of pain, skipping a meaningful physical exam, submitting an MRI request that gets denied repeatedly, and then threatening to call 911 after a patient asks for accountability says a lot.
I paid out of network expecting expertise, urgency, and professionalism. What I experienced was a rushed and inadequate evaluation, poor documentation, poor follow-through, and an extremely unprofessional response when I questioned the care. If you have hip or pelvis pain and need a careful physical exam, clear clinical reasoning, proper insurance documentation, and respectful follow-through, I would not recommend this office based on my experience.
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What is especially troubling about this response is the gaslighting. Instead of addressing the substance of my complaint, Dr. Mehta is trying to rewrite the situation as if the main issue was patient behavior rather than the quality of care, lack of meaningful examination, poor follow-through, and failed MRI authorization process.
She says there was a "well documented physical exam." That does not match my experience in the room. I was not asked to perform meaningful movement testing, range-of-motion testing, gait evaluation, leg raise testing, or any hands-on examination of the painful area. Claiming after the fact that a complete exam occurred does not change what I experienced as the patient.
She also claims law enforcement was contacted because of "threatening behavior." I strongly reject that characterization. No law enforcement ever showed up, and from my perspective, the 911 threat was used to intimidate me and reframe a legitimate patient complaint as a safety issue in front of other patients and staff.
The issue is not simply that insurance denied the MRI. The issue is that I paid out of network expecting timely, competent orthopedic care, but received no clear diagnosis, no meaningful exam from my perspective, poor follow-through, and then a false accusation that I was thr
