I had been going to Dr. Maria Elena Acal's office for years, it is clear from my experiences that either the office does not know what they are doing or they are doing some shady stuff to make extra money.
During the pandemic I noticed I had a pain and chip in my tooth, unfortunately I had lost my coverage from my old job. Luckily I had Medi-Cal, so I called Maria Elena Acal's office letting them know that I am a patient but have Medi-Cal now. The receptionist blew me off stating that they are not taking any Medi-Cal patients, I explained I am already a patient but was referred to another office.
Eventually my mother went in for treatment and reexplained my situation, all of a sudden they are taking Medi-Cal patients and I can come in. I call and set up the appointment in March, I went in for X-Rays and was told I have two teeth that are in need of crowns. I was also told that Medi-Cal does not cover crowns so that I would need to pay out of pocket if I would like my issue resolved, each crown being between $800 - $1,000. I let them know I cannot afford it for now so I will just deal with the pain and chip.
In April I found a new job and get coverage right away, eventually I go in and explain this. At this point Ella looked into my insurance and states that my insurance does cover crowns but that they will need to be silver. The dentist submitted a claim to my insurance for both crowns, this was denied. When speaking with my insurance they let me know the X-Rays the dentist sent do not show enough damage to cover my crown and I would need to pay out of pocket. I call my dentist and explain the situation. They asked I come in and take more X-Rays, they take X-Rays and photos of the damage. At this point they advised they have sent the documents to my insurance. The office NEVER followed up until I called back. At that point Ella advises she sent X-Rays that are old and not new ones I had taken with the dentist so she will resubmit the X-Rays and supposedly added photos of the damage.
My claim once again was denied due to the fact that the dentist sent the same thing. I called my insurance and they let me know the office just faxed the same thing. They advised that the dentist send the documents via mail and request an appeal to speak with the dentist denying the claim.
I advise Ella and Maria Elena Acal of this and they state they will mail the documents. I followed up with my insurance every business day for two weeks before my insurance confirmed they never received any documents via mail.
When I called to ask when they sent it and what is the tracking number that I requested when the documents were sent. I was told by Ella and Maria Elena Acal that the documents are sent with only a stamp and no tracking. Upset, I let them know that I would have paid for the shipping to have a tracking number. They let me know they can try sending me to their sister office to see if they can help. I deny their offer and got to a completely different dentist. This dentist took one appointment and one attempt to get my claim approved. I now have a crown that I did not have to pay out of pocket for.
I am not sure what Maria Elena Acal's office was doing but to me it seems they are saying things that are LIES in order to charge patients out of pocket. The following procedures were covered by both Medi-Cal and my insurance, this was confirmed with my new dentist. My mother also had her root canal covered by Medi-Cal with this new office.
I will NEVER come back to this office and I will NEVER recommend going there. STAY AWAY. read more