Dr. Fox is a competent doctor, but I have to give his business 1 star and strongly recommend prospective patients look elsewhere. Dr. Fox's practice bills for as many services as it can get away with in a single visit. There is nothing inherently wrong with billing for multiple services when multiple services are rendered, but it gets shady when you go in for a physical and find yourself billed for the physical (okay), lab work (okay), and "consultation services" (wait a second).
When I first visited Dr. Fox for a physical in 2014, he clearly and explicitly warned me that discussing anything outside the limits of the physical would constitute a consultation and that I would be billed for it. Apparently patients in the past have had some "confusion" over this. Fair enough, I did not discuss any issues other than what he asked about during the physical, and I received an accurate bill. I went back to visit him in mid-2015 for an injury. This second visit clearly constituted a consultation, so no problem when I got billed for that. The third visit was later in 2015, a physical again. I did not seek consultation services during the physical, I simply filled out the forms, answered his questions, let him examine me, did lab work, and left. Keeping his earlier disclaimer in mind, I did say to Dr. Fox at the beginning of the physical that I was only present for a physical and did not wish to receive any additional services.
Later, I received a bill that included charges for consultation services in addition to the physical and lab work. I called to inquire why, and learned that it was because Dr. Fox indicated he treated me for the injury during the physical, hence consultation beyond the standard physical. Because I checked a box on the intake form (standard during physical) regarding the injury, Dr. Fox did ask me if I was still suffering from the injury during the physical and I indicated I was no longer experiencing symptoms. He provided no treatment, and this 30 second conversation was clearly within the context of the physical. I explained this to the billing office and they said they would check with the doctor and get back to me on the charges.
After waiting over a month, I received no follow-up from billing and continued to get robo-calls telling me to pay up. I called back, they escalated the issue, disabled robo-calls, and stated they would reply soon. They followed up approximately one week later and said Dr. Fox had declared the above-described exchange qualified as a separate consultation and that my injury (which has healed) could have been "life-threatening" (nonsense), therefore he was obliged to perform a consultation during the physical and bill me.
I explained that to the billing representative. She was sympathetic and indicated that I was not the first patient to express concern over this practice, but this is how Dr. Fox plays the game, so I had a choice: Pay the bill, or don't and get reported to the credit bureaus. Fine. I paid the bill.
Dr. Fox, you've lost a patient and added to your lousy reputation because of your greed and shortsightedness. Good luck with your business. read more