Question
I was in a car accident (not my fault).  I visited a physician and then a chiropractor.  I saw him 6 times.  First visit he did simple xrays.  I got the bill and it was $1700 for six visits??  Wtf??  First visit, dc spent 10 minutes w/ me, but then the next visits I only saw him for 3 minutes.   Almost $300 for a 5 minute visit?  That's more than a brain surgeon.  
So when I paid my bill, I asked why so high bc my friends go to the chiro and they pay between $40 and $80 a visit.  And she says it was a car accident so it costs more.  My physician didn't charge me more bc it was a car accident.  The pharmacy didn't charge me more for the pain pills bc it was a car accident?  

I know one thing.  I am never going back to that chiro.  That seems WAAAAAY out of control.  So my question is, how is that legal...to charge more for a car accident?  I could see if my problems were worse than most people and he had to spend more time w/ me, but he didn't.

Answer
Dear Adele,

I am so sorry that it has taken several days to get back to you regarding your question. I actually answered it earlier, but for some reason, (probably my own technological incompetence) the answer didn't go through. So... Here I go again!

You ran into a problem that is very common in the chiropractic world... how to get paid when services are rendered....

In the industry, we often do and provide many services that we bill for but are not paid for by the insurance company, for one reason or another... usually just because they simply refuse to pay. It is not fair. The doctor is left with a dilema.  Does he bill the patient for the care that was given, or does he "write off" the charge.

A perfect example is a recent bill that my office sent out for care to a patient in my office. The insurance was billed for about $150, and they paid me $17.  The humanitarian in me says that I should be nice to my patient. The fact that I have bills and expenses that must be met gives me the incentive to bill the patient for the balance.  The truth of the matter, is that often the humanitarian side of the doctor wins out... and the patient is released from their debt.

In cases where accident injuries occur, the doctor can often actually get paid for what is billed.   Some unscrupulous doctors will actually drive their charges high to try and compensate for the cases where they "loose their shirts" when they get paid little or nothing.

It is a horrible, and broken system.

If you feel that you were treated poorly, you can contact the board of chiropractic in your home state. They will help you to file a complaint, if you desire.

I don't know if your doctor did something wrong or not.  In my office, I always make it a policy to bill the insurance for what I do... and to be as kind, financially, as I can afford to be, to the patient so that they can get the care that they need.

Good luck with this. I hope that in general you are feeling much better, and that you have recovered from your injuries from the automobile accident.

Keith Biggs, DC
http://www.eastmesachiropractor.com