We started taking my daughter to Community Hearing Services on 9/1/21. Before our first appointment, we were told, by Community Hearing Services, that our insurance (Aetna) was in-network. On The week of October 11th, we received an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from our insurance stating that they were out of network.
The week we received the EOB, my wife called to inquire about this. She was told that they were in-network and they would look into it. Two weeks passed without any update. Then, we received a bill on or about 11/1/21 for the full amount of the initial consultation with no insurance.
After receiving the bill, I called Community Hearing Services. I expressed my concern that our insurance stated they were out of network. The receptionist told me that Aetna was in-network. They would reach out to their rep.
On 11/3/21 I called back to get a status update and was told that their rep said, "It must have been an error because they are in-network." They said that they were going to resubmit the claim to Aetna.
On 11/22/21 we received another EOB from our insurance stating: "Your provider asked us to take another look at this claim. We reviewed our original decision; based on available information, our original decision appears to be correct." On the same day (11/22/21) we also received another EOB for all the visits since the initial consultation on 9/1/21. All of these visits had been denied by Aetna.
On 11/23/21 I reached out again to Community Hearing Services about the denial of service claims. Later that day I received a voicemail from an employee named Kelsey stating that this was once again an insurance error. She said she had confirmed with my insurance that I was covered and had met my out-of-pocket max for the year. She further stated that everything will be covered and we would incur no costs. (See transcript from voicemail attached)
On 12/17/21 we received another EOB from our insurance stating that the claim had been denied. Due to the holidays, I was not able to call the office until 12/29/21. Kelsey said that she would look into the issue.
** Keep in mind, we've been continuing to go every week BEING TOLD BY COMMUNITY HEARING SERVICES they were in our insurances network and this was going to be covered.**
We finally decided to discontinue all appointments for our daughter until the insurance matter was resolved.
On 3/18/22, I received another voicemail from Kelsey stating that she had answers from our insurance and to call back. On 3/24/22 I returned her call. I was informed that it was correctly denied by our insurance. We would be responsible for everything out of pocket ($998.68) with their oh so generous "cash discount" (~$200 off).
This has been extremely frustrating. We already met our out-of-pocket max for the year. I had been told we would incur no costs. So, I guess we're on the hook for the $998.68 they're billing us on top of the other $5000 in medical bills we've had this year.
Seeing other parents speaking to their receptionist about "insurance issues" makes this even more concerning. This may be a common practice of theirs.
The moral of the story is don't get conned as we did. Speak with your insurance company to ensure they will cover these visits. Don't let Community Hearing Services tell you it will be covered and lull you into continuing these services. read more