Today I wrote a letter and filed a complaint with the state of Arizona. Because I received a…read morevoicemail AGAIN! And read on their website, the office is CLOSED again.
I respectfully request that the Office of the Arizona Attorney General investigate this company's business practices. Based upon my experience, I believe its conduct may constitute violations of the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act, A.R.S. §§ 44-1521 through 44-1534, as well as applicable federal regulations governing suppliers of durable medical equipment.
Throughout this process, I complied with every request made of me. I attended my physician's appointment within the deadline the company imposed. My insurance company paid its portion of the claim. I wrote multiple checks to the company, and every check cleared my bank. Despite my complete cooperation, the company repeatedly failed to fulfill its obligations.
I have relied on a CPAP machine for more than 22 years. And I have asthma. The company knew this equipment was medically necessary, yet I was forced to wait nearly nine weeks for a replacement machine after my CPAP machine died in the middle of the night. During that time, I endured repeated unanswered telephone calls, ignored voicemail messages, and broken promises that someone would contact me. Today is Friday, and the return call I was promised on Wednesday never occurred.
The company's conduct appears to demonstrate a pattern of neglect and disregard for its patients. Specifically, I ask your office to determine whether the company engaged in:
Unfair or deceptive business practices are prohibited by A.R.S. § 44-1522 by making repeated promises to return calls and provide services that were never fulfilled.
Failure to provide services in a commercially reasonable manner after accepting payment from both my insurance company and me.
Failure to maintain or properly utilize patient records forced me to locate documentation of my own 2004 sleep study because the company could not or would not verify my medical history.
Failure to comply with federal supplier standards applicable to Medicare-enrolled suppliers of durable medical equipment under 42 C.F.R. § 424.57, including standards relating to documentation, patient service, and compliance with applicable laws.
Whether these actions ultimately constitute violations of Arizona law or federal regulations is a determination to be made by your office. However, the facts demonstrate a consistent pattern of poor communication, broken commitments, unnecessary delay in providing medically necessary equipment, and disregard for a patient's health and well-being.
I respectfully request that the Attorney General investigate this company's business practices to determine whether they violate the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act or other applicable state and federal laws, and whether corrective or enforcement action is appropriate to protect Arizona consumers from experiencing similar treatment.
Basically, because I lost sleep for nearly 9 weeks, maybe I would sleep one to three hours and could never fall back asleep after waking up, trying to catch my breath. Not once did anyone understand the hell I was living through.
During my last telephone call with this company last week, with two people present, as I tried to explain that I had made payments, my insurance company had made a payment, and I had seen my family doctor, I was told, "to stop talking over the employee that was on the line with me." This has not been a positive experience, and I have been doing all the research and begging my family doctor to get involved and support me.
This entire process has been unnecessary for a patient and a 76-year-old senior citizen.
