I had my first colonoscopy performed by Dr Kevin Jo 5 years ago at Midstate Medical in Meriden CT and was quite pleased. I found Dr Jo to be informative, professional, and to have a nice bedside manner. The procedure went without a hitch, but unfortunately... I believe Connecticut GI has spoiled his well earned reputation.
I received a message from someone who introduced themselves as being from Dr Jo's office for my 5 year colonoscopy. Although I was a bit surprised to be solicited for a medical procedure, I returned the call only to be greeted by an automated menu system for a place called Connecticut GI. Figuring I misdialed, I called back to get the same menu. I followed the prompts and got in touch with someone that said I could schedule with Dr Jo for my procedure. Upon scheduling, I was informed that the procedure would be at Connecticut GI in Wallingford and not at Midstate as before. I was skeptical about these changes, but trusted them to move forward (big mistake).
I week prior to my appointment, I received a call from the Connecticut GI billing department to tell me my procedure was NOT covered by my insurance and I would have to pay out of pocket! I knew my health insurance paid for a colonoscopy so I asked why. I was told by someone named Joyce that because of my family's history of colon cancer (father more than 30 years ago) that my insurance would not pay for the procedure! I said "what the heck does my father have to do with my healthcare"? In which Joyce further explained that I had a couple polyps removed last time and because of that, insurances won't pay. She then went on to say that I needed to provide a deposit of $500.00 to secure the procedure and I would probably be paying $900.00 for the doctor, $1,000.00 for anesthesia, and any additional unforeseen lab costs! I was furious and decided to contact my healthcare insurance immediately.
My healthcare insurance representative assured me colonoscopy procedures were in fact covered and that this made no sense at all. She decided to contact the person I was speaking to directly to see if there was a problem with coding. After an extensive phone ordeal, it turns out that I AM COVERED for the colonoscopy, but my healthcare insurance needed additional information from Connecticut GI to ensure that I would not be charged. The billing department was unable to provide this information, so we contacted the Wallingford location where the procedure was to take place. The Wallingford location was unable to provide the information as well. Since my insurance could not verify the necessary information with Connecticut GI to see if any provisions would be out-of-network... I immediately cancelled the procedure altogether.
Due to being lied to, and for the unethical practices of Connecticut GI, I would not recommend them. If you chose to do so... do your due diligence and verify every procedural code with your healthcare insurance so you don't end up paying out of pocket unnecessarily. read more