EIGHT MONTHS OF LIES

I lost my cool this morning. After calming down for a few hours, I think I got it back. The following is what led up to today:

My name is Marc Charest. I am 49 years old and was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 1996. On June 17, 2010, I went to the wheelchair clinic at St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson, NY to be fitted for a new wheelchair. Present were Lauren, a PT at the clinic, a manufacturer's rep (whose name I don't recall) and Gail from Medstar Surgical. Her number is 1-800-223-4486 extension 193.

I told Gail from Medstar the urgency with which I needed this new wheelchair. My current chair was (and still is) in poor shape and in need of repairs. Gail and the manufacturer's rep assured me of two things: I would have my new chair by October 2010, and if I needed one, a loaner chair would be available. Great! I was a happy customer.

THE LIES BEGIN

Being a trusting, patient man I took them at their word. By late October I had not heard from them and began calling. It took until mid-November to get a call back, from Janine at Medstar. Remarkably, a paperwork problem had been found, but not until after I had begun calling in October. I was told then the paperwork was complete and it was going to Medicare for approval. It took an incredible FIVE MONTHS to review this paperwork? Medicare was going to take two weeks to approve it, then about six more weeks to actually build the chair.

Having just put several hundred dollars in repairs into my chair and needing more, an additional eight weeks of delays was untenable. I requested a loaner, as promised, but none was forthcoming. Why? "Oh, we don't give loaners." Why did Gail offer one? "No she didn't." BULLSHIT! Not once since October has Gail had the guts to call me, just Janine.

MORE LIES

After the November phone call, the time frame was apparently mid-January before my chair would arrive. Okay, I can live with it I guess. The holidays are coming, the kids will be home from college, there's plenty to keep me busy. Instead of getting annoyed, I let my social worker, Dawn, handle the phone calls. Since I would be responsible for about 20% of the $25,000+ wheelchair, Dawn needed an estimate from Medstar so we could start looking for funding. She called Medstar (800-223-4486 ex 193) from my house and at least two other times, beginning December 28, 2010. No calls were returned.

February first rolls around and I couldn't wait any longer, so I called and left a message with Janine at Medstar. No phone call was returned, but by now I'm not surprised. I called again today, February 8, 2011 and got Janine on the phone. Janine had actually talked with Dawn, my social worker. When I asked what was going on I was told THE PAPERWORK WAS STILL NOT COMPLETE! I hit the damn roof!

INEPT, CALLOUS OR FRAUDULENT?

Now keep in mind, the paperwork has not even left Medstar Surgical's offices yet. Ineptitude must be running rampant at Medstar. Janine told me (again) today that getting the paperwork right is important since Medicare will reject it and we won't be able to reapply for six months. So it's better to waste EIGHT MONTHS getting it right? Has Medstar even done this before?

After reading the riot act to Janine, I asked that I get a call from someone in a supervisory position, preferably the director of rehab at Medstar Surgical. I assured her I would not back down from my demand of action. The call never came.

Lauren from the wheelchair clinic did call today and offered to help. She recommended I contact another vendor but we agreed that, at this point, the fastest way for me to get my chair is to stick it out with Medstar. A bitter pill to say the least.

Gail made promises she obviously has no intentions of keeping. She doesn't have the guts to call me either. Does reneging on the promise of a loaner chair rise to the level of fraud? Is inaction a form of fraud? I'm not sure. Will Medstar make good on any of it's promises? Don't hold your breath.

HAVE YOU BEEN WRONGED BY MEDSTAR?

I want to hear from others who have had difficulties with Medstar. Please post comments.

CONTACT MEDSTAR

Please contact Medstar and let them know what you think. Their number is 1-800-223-4486. Janine's extension is 193. You can email them at info@medstarsurgical.com. Please mention my name or link to this blog. Watch for frequent updates. Thanks for your help!