Ascension Medical Group Via Christi, P.A. review: Billing department discrepancies for vaccines provided to my 4-year-old son

I've taken my son to Via Christi St. Theresa since his birth in 2019, at which point we had Medishare as our form of insurance, which isn't really insurance, it is Christian Medical Bill Sharing. Because it is not insurance, we were eligible for the Vaccines for Children or VCF program through the CDC so that we did not have to pay full price for his vaccinations and immunizations, as they are VERY expensive. In 2020, we were able to put him on insurance through one of the places where we were employed so we no longer had to worry about vaccines, as they were covered under insurance. During that time, Via Christi was bought by Ascension Medical Group, and their entire billing department has been and is a nightmare to deal with. We've had several issues with things being coded incorrectly and us being charged more than what we should, that we had to call and dispute several times, over the course of months to get corrected so that we weren't overpaying for simple visits like checkups for colds to make sure they aren't something more serious like RSV or pnemonia.

In March of 2023, we switched our son back to Medishare because insurance became too expensive. I forewarned his doctor at Ascension Medical Group Via Christi, P.A., mind you it is the same doctor he has had since birth with the same nursing staff, that we were back on Medishare and he needed the VCF vaccines and immunizations at his 4-year-old wellness appointment. They said yes, they would be giving him the VCF vaccines. I asked and confirmed with the doctor, and both nurses who administered the vaccines that they were the VCF ones, and they all stated that they were VCF vaccines and immunizations. About a month after the appointment we received our bill for this appointment in the amount of $770.06. Looking at the charges, it was very evident we were being charged full price for the vaccines and immunizations I was told by three staff members that they would be VCF shots so that we would not be charged full price. I called Ascension's billing department on May 22nd to dispute this and they said it would be put under review, but I needed to confirm with the doctor's office that they had indicated they were VCF vaccines on the charting. So I called the doctor's office and they confirmed that they were indeed VCF shots and were notated as such on the charting. So I called Ascension's billing department back to confirm that they were indeed indicated as such. They assured me I wouldn't be sent to collections as this was under review.

I received subsequent bills in June, July, and August of 2023, all of which I called Ascension's billing department and reiterated the entire story to, every single time. Mind you, I work and get paid hourly, so this is literally money out of my pocket every time I have to make these phone calls all because the Ascension's billing department doesn't want to acknowledge what the doctor's office has indicated on the charting or just really wants to squeeze every penny out of their patients that they can.

During my phone call on August 2nd, I was assured by Ascension's billing department that they had escalated my ticket and that we would not be sent to collections over this bill, as they are still reviewing it. On October 2nd, we received a collections notice from Frost-Arnett on behalf of Ascension Medical Group Via Christi, P.A. for this bill of $770.06 dated as September 26th. So at this point in time I've been lied to at least twice by Ascension Medical Group. 1. In that we wouldn't be charged full price for these vaccines because they are VCF vaccines and we should only be paying administration fees of at the most, $25 per vaccine, and 2. that we wouldn't be sent to collections. I spoke with an employee of Frost-Arnett on October 3rd of 2023 about the bill and situation and they sent it for review and assured me it would not hit our credit for 30 days, but that it could take them 30 days to review the issue. They said to call back in two weeks. I called Ascension Medical Group's billing department that same day to explain the situation again, and the fact that they had lied to me twice, and they said they put in a "direct escalation" to review the issue and that they would email me with details and a status update. I have yet to receive an email from Ascension other than automated ones about the bill. I suppose that is lie number 3 from Ascension Medical Group.

On October 16th, we received another letter from Frost-Arnett. After calling them again, to again reiterate the situation, they said it is still under review and that we won't be sent to collections during the 30 days of the review period. They said they would give me a call back with the status update. The jury is out to see if either of these companies holds up what they have agreed to or if we're going to be stuck paying for something that we were lied to about having to pay in the first place.