36 replies to this topic

[confused]

I'm applying for SSDI. I just got a call from my pdoc's office. They have my records ready to send to social security, but they were also sent a 5-page evaluation form. They called because he would only fill it out if I paid him $50. I think if he fills out the form it will help, so I gave them my credit card number and paid it. It just seems wrong that I should have to pay.

[LunaRufina]

I'm sorry that does seem really wrong.

Call social security and ask them about that though. They may reimburse you. I know they reimburse doctors if they charge for examinations.

I don't know about the situation here, because it seems sort of grey. Maybe just ask them what costs are covered in the process and explain to them what the charge was.

Did you ask the doctor's office what the standard fees are for paperwork, etc?

As far as the form goes:
Do you know which form it was? If you can find out, there are a lot of forms online, you may want to go through and write a reaction to some of the questions for his reference. It may help. Was he supposed to do an evalutation along with it and ask you specific questions?


I don't know what else to say but it might just be a standard practice at his office.


...
Though, if he's pulling out of his ass, something really is amiss here.

[wifezilla]

WHAT?!?!?!?!

They intentionally make these forms impossible and then the doctor has the nerve to charge you to fill them out?!?!??!

This is just wrong.

[december_brigette]

Hi,

Unfortunately some doctors charge for EVERYTHING and that includes any type of paperwork - disability, fmla, additional insurance paperwork...anything extra, really.

it puts some people in a hard place...$50 for your doctor to fill out paperwork seems unreasonable. but if thats the office's policy...what are you gonna do but pay?

good luck,
december

[crazynotstupid]

Some doc. I'd be looking in the Yellow Pages...

[sdjeff]

I have SSDI and got into this situation

The 5 page form could be a Residual Functional Capacity ( RFC ) questionare. Unfortunately they are able to charge you to fill those out. It takes most doctors 1-2 hours to properly fill it out.

The other medical records have to be sent to the SSA and sometimes they will pay the doc a nominal fee if charged.

Yeah, it's a crappy system and is not fair. I do wish you luck.

Edited by sdjeff, 14 February 2007 - 04:46 AM.

[Loon-A-TiK]

i know that it can take pdocs awhile to fill out the forms and that SSA doesn't give them much to cover their time (kinda like how ssa doesn't give us much SSDI- cheap bastards), but i'm more soft-hearted than that. i would think that they know, that because you're applying for SSDI in the first place, that you're probably not in the best place financially and $50 is a lot of money for you. i would offer my services pro bono if i had to, to see my patients get the help they needed. and it isn't like you don't spend enough money on office visits anyway. your status as a client pays for the pdoc to spend a little time with the paperwork i should think.

i'd really consider looking in the yellow pages, like CNS suggested. i've never heard of that. i know they take a lot of time to do it, but as i mentioned, there are so many reasons to not charge you, if for no other than they know you're poor and it would be out of their own goodness. you want a doctor who has a good heart.

maybe i'm just sappy over here, and have no business head. it probably is the case. but i just can't see anyone being charged that much for some paperwork.

[lemonflavor]

My last pdoc didn't charge me. He filled out the form soon after I gave it to him and I doubt it takes all that long to fill it out if they know you well. When we pay them $200-$400+ an hour this usually includes phone calls, dealing with some paperwork etc. and hopefully filling out a form for SSDI. Mine was called the Mental Impairment Questionaire.

[gizmo]

go to this website: [link=http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/forms_pdfs/tdi/Code.pdf" target="_blank]http://lwd.dol.state...fs/tdi/Code.pdf[/link]
go to page 8 , it states No licensed medical practitioner shall charge a fee. Fight it with the Doctor!!
This applies to NJ only. Hope this helps?

Giggle... I love it when this happens. Ok, the OP is now going to fight the fee they already paid to the doctor now because of something you said two years later.

Sorry, there's just been quite a few "graveyard postings" been dug up lately (one of them mine, yikes!) and it made me laugh.

[beetle]

I know this is an old thread that got bumped but just wanted to add that my pdoc charges for all that kind of paperwork too. I just paid $25 for FMLA paperwork and it's the same charge, I think, for any kind of SSDI paperwork. She, the pdoc, has been complaining to me lately that there's just so much paperwork they have to do with the regular stuff like dealing with insurance companies and all that, that they have to charge for anything extra.

So far, they don't charge me with anything that's directly related to my care. Like getting prior authorization on my meds. And I know that takes time and it's a PIA to them but I can't help it that my insurance wants all this stupid paperwork.

[Thomas]

I just paid $25 to have my FMLA paperwork filled out. My previous pdoc did the same thing; it sounds like a standard practice (which doesn't mean it's good).

Tommy

[gizmo]

Try calling your lawyer or accountant to see if he will get on the phone with you to chat about some professional question and you will get a bill based on a rate of $200-$300 per hour.

Actually, my parent's lawyer does take phone calls, and would sit in to visit my parents, for free. Of course, this was a small town and he'd been not only a lawyer, but a friend, of my family for more than 30 years.

I worked 15 years in banking. We always had that sign "$20 per hour for research fee" and not once in those 15 years over a variety of employers did we ever charge that fee. And if you think doctors have a lot of research to do to answer questions, try being a banker. Doctors have nothing on the research bankers do. For free. On top of all their other daily work.

[confused]

I know this post is old, but I felt I had to reply. Doctors are often burdened with huge amounts of paperwork, phone calls and messages. Just today I received 40 messages to call people back for one thing or another. This all takes time. Forms take a huge amount of time,especially if they are just dropped off without any guidance. Sometimes you are left to plow through a patient's chart to find relevant dates and office visits. Why should this time not be reimbursed? Try calling your lawyer or accountant to see if he will get on the phone with you to chat about some professional question and you will get a bill based on a rate of $200-$300 per hour.
If you paid your doctor an annual fee, as is the case with boutique medicine, then you might have a point about getting forms for free.
Generally, doctors do not charge to return a phone call, but maybe they should, because often the advice they give takes the place of an office visit. Filling out forms, which is generally a lot of work, should require a fee in most cases.
Hope you appreciate the other side of the argument.
MTW

Thanks. This is an old post and I do understand that now.

I ended up being awarded SSDI shortly after he returned the paperwork so now I think the money was well spent.

[notfred]

I pay a co-pay any time I need a letter or forms filled out by my doc. He used to do it or free but I really require a lot of notes to get the meds I need so it takes a lot of his time.

nf