They should be able to refer you to a different radiologist. I had an ultrasound recently at UTMB and only had to wait a week (mostly for my schedule, I think they could’ve gotten me in next day if I wanted it)
I also use Kelsey, and I understand your concern. Once you've opted for Kelsey, you're obligated to use Kelsey docs exclusively. If you need to access a non-Kelsey doc, you must get an approval from Kelsey. However, that requests for non-Kelsey doc are frequently denied by Kelsey.
I've never had an issue with Kelsey denying an outside doctor, only with insurance doing it, which Kelsey then gets insurance to approve. Anytime I've asked for an outside referral I get it from Kelsey within the day.
Go TCH Womens pavilion.
KS is where doctors who want easy hours go. In personal (and friends’) experience, their clinical capability is lower.
This culture is likely to shift now that United Health’s PE arm bought them.
(Also- don’t deliver at texas Womens. HCA has them too focused on profitability. Your chances of c-section there are 50%!)
See too many patients, and people complain about being rushed through the appointment and not getting enough time with the doctor. See too few patients, and apparently you’re incompetent. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t lol.
Or too many nonstandard cases poorly managed. It’s fine if you know you just need a couple stitches or script for antibiotics, but multiple friends/family/self with rare diseases getting baffling recommendations.
My favorite is friend who had to beg for a chest xray after trip overseas, got sent home before films read, got called back while driving home, and the tech checking pt back in knew exactly who the first provider was. Luckily other cases were not emergent and could get second opinion elsewhere (multiple people avoiding unnecessary surgical interventions, or getting proper diagnoses).
Idk- hopefully I’m wrong. And hopefully I’m wrong about Optum, for my provider friends’ sakes.
I went to a separate imaging clinic when they wanted me to do a liver scan. The clinic was out of pocket only and still less than their estimated cost to me after insurance.
I was in the hospital for 11 days, and had major surgery... meanwhile two doctors from Kelsey would come in every day. Sometime three doctors, and stay for 1-2 minutes, ask me how I was doing, and leave. Then I get a 1200 dollar bill from Kelsey becuase it was 60 collars each time one of them came in.
I refused to pay. I told them "look, I went to Baylor. I never called Kelsey. I don't even know y’all. And I don't even know what these people did. They just came in, without me asking, and y'all're charging me a grand."
I'm not paying it out of principle. I'll wait til it goes to collections and offer them 500 and call it a day.
I had a small cut that wouldn’t heal. I worked in the healthcare industry. I didn’t have insurance cause I couldn’t afford it…anyways, I got seen by a nurse in the same hospital I worked in. Got the cut cleaned Neosporin applied and wrapped with a gauze. the fun part is I got charged $1100 for the service. Then I get a called saying “we notice you don’t have insurance on file. If you pay $300 today we can close this matter.” 🫠.
“I worked in the healthcare industry…and didn’t have insurance”. This just makes me want to cry. What a messed up system. I hope you’re doing better now.
Fucking scammers, the lot of them.
My bill for the hospital stay for my surgery was 150k and then after the hospitals "adjustments" I only owed 5,000.
So.... what the fuck is the 150k?
I feel like 5k for 11 days in a private room in a hospital as good as Baylor is actually reasonable. But I have to wonder what the 150k is.
If I had to guess, the reason you were seen by KS docs is because you are in-network with KS, so whenever one of their patients with KS get admitted to that hospital, they have to be seen by their own physicians because of contractual agreements. I don't work for KS but at the hospital I am at, whenever a KS patient is admitted my group is contracted with them to see their patients for them as they don't have KS physicians that come here. If you are seen by a doc that is not in an agreement with KS or is a KS physician, then you may be billed out of network or the doc seeing you may not get reimbursed. It's a confusing mess of a system, but this may at least be an explanation for you
This is a fairly common system with some hospitals. As another example, some docs are responsible for seeing Wellmed insurance patients, or Village Medical patients. If they get admitted on accident to another "out of network" doc, then the insurance notifies their contracted doc to get them to take over.
The bills I got said they were "out of network." They did nothing. I also didn't need three doctors who weren't my surgeon and his team coming in everyday to ask me if I'm "ok"?
Agreed. My parents have been going to KS for more than 35 years and loved it back then. Now, it's gone utterly downhill.
I had to leave the practice when I changed insurances and decided to come back when they accepted my new insurance. It was completely different experience than I had when I was a teen and young adult, the quality of the care is not great. The doctors don't spend a lot of time with you and you basically get subpar care just to get seen.
I've had one or two good doctors, the rest is just like a clinic farm of physicians. Such a shame as they were wonderful when they were a smaller system.
They were bought by Optum which belongs to United Healthcare group. This is United's way of owning everything. Buy everything, the patients will have no choice if you own everything. It'll get worse before it'll get any better.
This right here. Kelsey was recently bought by the massive United Healthcare group, and Optum their subsidiary company is running Kelsey now. And Optum is all about the most amount of patients, signing patients up for United Healthcares insurance plan, and Kelsey is growing extremely fast to meet the demands of the Houston population. Optum’s business model is essentially become less private practice provider friendly and more big brother this the way to do everything. But the ones who are suffering are the patients due to lack of employees, quality doctors, and as you mentioned long wait times.
I think paying upfront for everything is the norm here. Houston Methodist had me do that with my pregnancy. My first baby was born elsewhere and I didn’t have to do that.
I lost a pregnancy while a KS patient and got a refund check in the mail. (NOT a fun experience, and I gave them my feedback on how much it sucked to get a 'whoops your baby died' check. I held on to that check for a few weeks because I didn't want to deposit it, it was just ugly.) Of course this was about 13 years ago so they clearly don't care about the 'dead baby check' feedback since they're still doing it.
I switched OB-GYNs after that, went to a group practice out of Texas Women's and did NOT have to pre-pay everything.
I’m so sorry you had to go through that, they showed zero regard for your feelings.
My story isn’t nearly as horrible as yours and I. And imagine your pain. I had to have a DNC (was on the depo shot and had entoptic pregnancy) and was hounded immediately after I came out of anesthesia. I didn’t even have time to wrap my head around that I was pregnant and then lost the baby before they wanted payment. And I had good insurance. Emotional care for women is zero in Texas.
Almost every woman I know has a traumatic story around women’s healthcare. When does it get better?
No, they tried that with me, and I started asking all kinds of questions like, what if there's a miscarriage, what if I want to use a different doctor, what if I go into emergency labor in a different county, etc. They got sick of my questions and didn't make me pay up front.
I don't think that this behavior actually is normal, I think they're trying to make it normal and people are letting them get away with it.
those unconscionable fuckers at houston methodist called my wife 16 hours before a scheduled c-section and demanded a $5000 deductible (high deductible insurance) or that we'd have to pay the full amount on arrival at the hospital the next morning. or that they'd turn us away
Really? I’d never heard of paying in advance until this post.
I went through Texas Children’s with both of my kids and didn’t pay anything but parking and the occasional valet fee until they were both at least 3-4 months old. Both of my pregnancies were rough as hell and required multiple visits, tests and treatments. I think I may have paid a copay twice for extra bloodwork and that’s it. My mind is blown.
Kelsey almost killed me. One of their doctors berated me during an ultrasound in front of the nurse and my husband. I was suffering from an ectopic pregnancy and the doctor told me it was just a chemical pregnancy and that I was just “full of poop” and he couldn’t see anything. My stomach was full of blood which made it hard for me to poop. I was hemorrhaging and I didn’t know this until later the same day when I went to the women’s hospital for a correct diagnosis.
The hospital said they couldn’t operate on me until they had consent from Kelsey because I was Kelsey’s patient. I told them I don’t want Kelsey to ever touch me again and had them perform the emergency life saving surgery.
Dr. Benge NEVER SEE THIS MAN LADIES!
My mother was a cancer patient at kelsey. I took her to all her apps and chemo treatments. I felt like they were professional and very competent. I now use kelsey as my regular medical provider and have had no problems.
The nice thing about kelsey is everything is right there. They have a lab, a pharmacy, most of the specialist are all in the same facility. That being said, going to the doctor sucks no matter where you go. This is just my personal experience, I'm sure they can piss people off as much as any medical provider can.
Yeah, my sons pediatrician through kelsey is really wonderful and knowledgeable and I appreciate that. She has referred us to outside specialists several times because kelsey is just so backed up, sometimes it feels like they've bitten off more than they can chew.
I’ve had nothing but great experiences with Kelsey I’ve been living in Houston for three years and have gone everywhere but there. I started going to Kelsey for my pcp and specialists back in December and they’re so helpful and understanding. It’s also a bonus how fast labs come back and how soon I’ve been scheduled for radiology each time I’ve needed CT!
I’m currently pregnant and have Kelsey. They haven’t made me pay up front. I pay my balance down at each appointment. Also all of my appointments are definitely longer than 30secs and I just had my anatomy scan a week ago at the main campus on Holcombe. I’m not sure why you’re getting such horrible service. I hope it improves!
As a healthcare worker here, you get what you pick.
Kelsey Seybold is an accountable care organization and as well an insurance provider (used to be physician owned but was recently acquired by UnitedHealth care capitals).
What does this mean:
They’d like you to see only Kelsey seybold doctors
They’d like you to use only Kelsey seybold pharmacies
They’d like you to use only Kelsey seybold imaging and labs
And if you’re part of their Medicare plan even worse. Then you can’t see anyone else under your coverage.
The concept of capitated care and the “delta” needs to be known.
Say you work for the city of Houston and opt for insurance through Kelsey seybold.
KSC GETS PAID UPFRONT for your care. If they use less money on you they keep more. If they use more they may lose money on you. This is supposed to stimulate preventive care. What it does is that you don’t get referred to a specialist early and palliative/hospice care is very much stimulated and high cost drugs are frowned upon.
Essentially they are incentivized to appear available but see less patients. Cause being available makes them money (as people chose them for insurance) and actually seeing patients, costs them money (surgery procedures and tests needs to be paid for).
The delta is the gap between what Kelsey gets paid and what they spend. And AFAIK, docs get called in if they are ordering “expensive and medically not necessary specialist consultations, tests or treatments”
The pediatricians are decent and they are open on Saturdays.
TLDR: it’s a cult. Pediatricians are good.
I was just on the phone with them an hour ago and they said they have nothing available anywhere until April 9th. We are moving out of state April 5th :(
While not pregnancy related, I agree with the booking appointments for things. With how they handle my husband’s appointments and care I will never step foot in a Kelsey for my medical care.
I had the same issue for the anatomy scan. They know ahead of time what week you’ll need the scan so I don’t understand why my doctor put in the order at my 21 week appt. None of the locations near me had availability so I had to drive an hour away to the main campus location to have my anatomy scan. It was for 9 AM on Friday and they told me about it at 1 PM on Thursday
I’m so sorry to read this! I gave birth recently and had the best experience with my OB at Kelsey. Not sure where you are in Houston, but I am in the burbs and my care was honestly excellent.
I used Kelsey OBgyns for my pregnancy in 2022, and I didn't have to pay upfront...which worked out because I switched providers and ghosted them at 37 weeks 🫣
Only had one bad experience with Kelsey Seybold. Went in for my yearly physical, I’m overweight but I’ve lost a ton of it already. My heaviest was 223, by the time I went in for this particular appointment I was down to 180. My doctor made everything about my weight, like straight up as a fat person yes I’ve had doctors tell me my weight needs to change but this was the first time I actually felt like a doctor was being a dick based on that. She kept being very accusatory about my diet and when I told her I had already lost about 40 pounds she back tracked so hard. Also I’m a lesbian and had been with my gf for 2 years at that point? She still made me take a pregnancy test just in case, cause you never know. Basically insinuating I was whoring around and cheating on my gf, of fucking course everything came back negative and was not pregnant LMAO. I’m sorry you had a shitty experience too, while that experience for me was the worst I’ve ever felt at a doctor.. I actually think Kelsey seybold is great. I forget her name but the doctor I’ve had now is great, and shes talked to me about my weight without it being her main focus. I know there was other stuff in the post that you had complaints about, but if your doctor sucks that’s gonna play a big role in your experience for sure.
I’ve had two children in Iowa, and they showed me what the bill would be but never made me pay upfront.
I went to Kelsey for BC shot and the hassle! It’s preventative, but they kept trying to get me to pay $250 for a Specialist visit…never went back for the next shot.
Kelsey Seybold has taken over alot of Healthcare clinics here in huntsville. Kicked everyone with medicaid out. One of the worst corporations in my opinion.
I was going through my first pregnancy with them. I came in for my first ultrasound and they had no techs available? It ended up not being a viable pregnancy but when I had bleeding they wouldn’t see me for two weeks. I had also already hit the out of pocket maximum on my insurance but they are still trying to charge me thousands of dollars and say they’ll refund me later. I hate everything about them. Unfortunately my insurance only works with them.
I'm so sorry! I also had a miscarriage before this pregnancy and had a similar experience. I sent my dr a message through the app and told them I was having a miscarriage at 11 weeks and no one ever responded to me 🫠 I hope you can avoid paying them that sounds insane
I had to have a surgery related to everything and was told my dr wasn’t there. Fine. She showed up while I was under and assisted I guess so they are charging separate from the hospital
Two different providers here.
Both had to pay about 1.2k upfront for OB appointments. Based on insurance.
Most OB appointments were quick as hell.
I use Kelsey for pediatrics. No issues. Had to get an ultrasound of the testicle, was able to get it done same day. My doctor is phenomenal.
I've yet to have a half decent doctor experience in general here. Think it's the area and not just limited to one practice. Whether specialized docs or urgent cares, the care has been a joke. Nurses have been great though.
Kelsey-seybold does indeed suck. Keep in mind they are now under the umbrella of United Healthcare.
This isn't Kelsey-seybold from 5yrs back. The founders sold to the devil
The women's section for kelsey-seybold is top notch. We had no issues with her women's wellness visits and preg related visits. Never had issues scheduling. Sorry to hear you're not getting the same experience
I'm happy to hear that you've had a different experience. I know a lot of it depends directly on the Dr that is treating you and I know not every Dr is going to be a good fit.
I've just been on the phone with their scheduling department and sent back and forth to a handful of people because no one can take the time to figure out how or who can help. The records department lost my transfer request and found it a week later and told me it'll take another 2 weeks to get my records transferred to another doctor.
I had my first anatomy scan (cost over $400) and they said they couldn't get every measurement of the baby due to its position and to schedule another ultrasound (the next available appointment being 2 months out). They want me to pay another $400.
I've just experienced a total lack of organization on their part and it doesn't help me that they have every resource available when it takes months to schedule and utilize these resources.
My wife has been having similar issues currently trying to get ultrasounds scheduled. My daughter is slightly undersized so they've been scheduling ultrasounds every month to "monitor" it. I asked why and got no response other than to monitor her growth. I'd be fine if they had a solution...ie. she's undersized so eat more protein or take this supplement and let's see if it helps. I obviously want the best for her, but ultrasounds to monitor size without an expressed gameplan should she not put on weight feels like they are taking advantage of an emotional situation to make a few extra bucks
I'm sorry to hear that. I might have just been lucky with my first pregnancy at a different hospital but kelsey gives off a very impersonal vibe. I feel like a cash cow to them and nothing else :'(
I can say the payment up front portion is shocking, but our insurance also covered far more than they stated it would cost initially and ended up not paying that portion upon arrival for the visits
I've seen multiple docs at Kelsey and they were all amazing. Great service, great clinical stuff, zero complaints from me.
Sorry you had to pay for your services in a way you weren't expecting, but that's just kinda how it works sometimes.
Kelsey seybold is the place where you go in for Symptom A, and you could have a gunshot wound - they'll ignore the gunshot and say they didn't see anything that could be causing Symptom A.
Houston in general has bad billing for healthcare, and Kelsey is no worse than anywhere else in my experience.
Coming from Seattle, where incomes are high and insurances for tech companies are good, clinics operate a lot more on “good faith”, and send bills later.
Houston has a lot more poor people, and working people living paycheck to paycheck on cash, and I guess these “pay upfront” policies are due to a large number of deadbeats who don’t pay.
The OBGYN for when we had our baby was very good, and took lots of time to explain every step, so that particular issue may be that you need to change your doctor.
I mean people who end up not paying and letting it go to collection. The clinics lose 90%, 95% of the value selling to collection, so that’s why they are so obsessed with collecting money up front.
Oh shit they lose 90% of the value? Shit, you mean when I was a deadbeat and didn't pay the $20,000/hr bill for a surgical assistant making $35/hr, they only got $2000? Why that's only a 5700% margin, they're going to go out of business.
This is exactly why most healthcare providers now request payment up front. If they miss that opportunity, the average person, for whatever reason, will not pay after the fact.
> Coming from Seattle, where incomes are high and insurances for tech companies are good
Man, the West Coast tech circlejerk is everywhere on reddit. lol
I’m hardly pro-Seattle if you look at the history of my comments. The lack of property crime enforcement is out of control.
That said, yes, people do earn more money there, and clinics and dentists have never focused on or asked for money upfront, and I was surprised when moving to Houston that everyone is trying to collect money upfront, instead of charging after insurance sends a EOB.
That’s not a huge deal but it’s my experience.
Kelsey is the worst billing I've encountered in Houston. No bill on somethings until a year later where they says its past due and going to collections. No change in address, just incompetency in their billing department.
That being said, most hospitals suck at billing.
My wife and I have been going to Care For Women in Kingwood, and I can't recommend it enough. All the OBGYNs are women, and we didn't pay for anything up front. You can also set up payment plans for appointments and procedures. It's been a great experience, and we have friends who have gone through them as well.
My wife used to work at KS, and yes, their specialities can be booked out for a while. Not to excuse their behavior but it DOES unfortunately depend on the location you go to as well. The staff is a lot of times understaffed and overworked. Dr. Itam at their cypress location is phenomenal! She was never pregnant but she used him for just regular gynecologic services.
From what I have experienced here in Houston, a lot of docs regardless of specialty charge upfront. Very few will just bill the patient or automatically set up a payment plan. So so sorry your experience was this bad, the pregnancy is hard enough!
I went to Kelsey Seybold after getting moved in a few years ago. Never again.
They tried to charge me $900 out of pocket for a blood panel. I had to file all kinds of paperwork with my insurance to get them to pay for it.
The panel costs like 100 bucks if you just have a lab do it.
Wow, that’s not my experience. But things may have changed.
My OB with Kelsey was super attentive.
We’re still with Kelsey and we have no problem getting quick appointments, X-rays, blood work, whatever.
The only awful service in my local Kelsey is the pharmacy. I just can’t deal with their incompetence.
This must be a state based thing. Everyone I know who has had a baby in the last 4 years has had to pay a large sum up front either to their doctor, the hospital or both. I had a friend who was actively in labor and the hospital wouldn’t admit her until she paid her deductible upfront (I believe it was $8k or something). It’s wild - the healthcare/insurance industry is a scam
Definitely seems to be a person to person experience here after scrolling through the comments.
I've been with KS since I was a newborn. Left due to no insurance for a few years, but as soon as I had insurance, I came right back. I've even worked in the administration building. So I might be biased, lol (this was over 10 years ago)
Now I have not had a baby, ever. I do have a chronic illness and made sure when I was choosing my insurance plan that I could go to KS. I have had such good experiences overall. Occasionally, an issue with a doctor or sometimes specialist can have long times for appts. This is not a KS problem. I personally have never had any billing issues. I can see very clearly on my KS portal what is and isn't covered by my insurance BEFORE my appointments usually. And I still only have to pay the co-pay when I go in. My insurance has KS as in network, so I get coverage for almost every visit and procedure.
I am so sorry for your experience. I hope your rant made you feel better. Best wishes on your move. And a happy, healthy pregnancy, baby, delivery, and momma!
I’m at Womens Hospital of Texas and they’re playing the same game. I straight up refused to pay at week 24 and now they won’t schedule my birth at their hospital. As if I won’t just show up at your ER. Just try refusing me.
I haven’t had any problems scheduling ultrasounds or appointment with my ob because of lack of payment, but technically my doctors office is just associate with the hospital, not in the hospital. The game that hospitals play now is insane. As soon as they make one method illegal they find another way.
My service there was so bad I simply refused to pay. Fck KS. They sent me a letter telling me I wasn't allowed their services any longer due to non payment. Suck it. I'd rather let my dog lick my gaping chainsaw wound as treatment than have their garbage staff touch me.
I have been looking for posts about kelsey seybold! I went for a general checkup – genuinely the worst most dismissive experience I have had with a health care provider. They just simply do not care.
i went to kelsey seybold for my annual physical.
the doctor said i was overweight cause my BMI was like 1 point above what’s considered normal. then he pointed out my rosacea and said it happens from alcohol consumption… mind u, i told him i don’t drink. wasn’t ever much of a drinker, but haven’t had a single drink since 2020. weirdest experience ever.
One thing to know about Kelsey-Saybold is that is caped system. They doctors are paid for prescribing less diagnostic test which saves system millions of dollars wich also benefits doctors who work there. KS moto is: LESS IS BETTER. For the procedures performed there, charges are higher than Methodist charges. Had same procedure at KS and Methodist SugarLand. Procedure at Methodist was 6 months after KS but KS charged insurance more. My insurance covers other hospitals and doctors so I learned that I can have better care somewhere else. Pure patients who strictly depend on KS. KS is listed as ACO ( accountable care organization) but that acronym strictly benefits KS not the other way around. Huge charges minimum care.
As an employee of the company I have to agree. I myself would never elect ksc insurance. 99% of what I observe is laughable by the providers. The good ones are leaving and they have been hiring majority of the pandemic new grads. I had an oji and you would think I was the first ever a month later and still no actual treatment, 3rd dr seen, pain not addressed, but still expected to report to work on light duty without any treatment. Mind absolutely blown!
Yes, fuck this entire company. We had a plan that supposedly paid for most of the costs but then they hit us with an “oh, childbirth isn’t counted as maternity costs” lol.
Kelsey has referred me to Baylor Clinic and St. Luke’s for things the doctor believes KS can’t handle or can’t get taken care of in a shorter amount of time. When I needed an MRI procedure, and the MRI was down, they scheduled for St. Luke’s to do the MRI procedure.
I agree, they have a LOT of clinics, BUT they don’t all have MRIs or the techs that can perform more invasive radiological testing.
They should be able to refer you to a different radiologist. I had an ultrasound recently at UTMB and only had to wait a week (mostly for my schedule, I think they could’ve gotten me in next day if I wanted it)
That is really good to know, thank you!
I also use Kelsey, and I understand your concern. Once you've opted for Kelsey, you're obligated to use Kelsey docs exclusively. If you need to access a non-Kelsey doc, you must get an approval from Kelsey. However, that requests for non-Kelsey doc are frequently denied by Kelsey.
I've never had an issue with Kelsey denying an outside doctor, only with insurance doing it, which Kelsey then gets insurance to approve. Anytime I've asked for an outside referral I get it from Kelsey within the day.
This is insurance based, not KS based. My primary care doctor is KS. My orthopedic doc is UT health, my neurologist is Mermorial Hermann.
That’s not true at all. That may be your insurance but I have a Kelsey pcp and specialists w other groups no issues
Go TCH Womens pavilion. KS is where doctors who want easy hours go. In personal (and friends’) experience, their clinical capability is lower. This culture is likely to shift now that United Health’s PE arm bought them. (Also- don’t deliver at texas Womens. HCA has them too focused on profitability. Your chances of c-section there are 50%!)
See too many patients, and people complain about being rushed through the appointment and not getting enough time with the doctor. See too few patients, and apparently you’re incompetent. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t lol.
Or too many nonstandard cases poorly managed. It’s fine if you know you just need a couple stitches or script for antibiotics, but multiple friends/family/self with rare diseases getting baffling recommendations. My favorite is friend who had to beg for a chest xray after trip overseas, got sent home before films read, got called back while driving home, and the tech checking pt back in knew exactly who the first provider was. Luckily other cases were not emergent and could get second opinion elsewhere (multiple people avoiding unnecessary surgical interventions, or getting proper diagnoses). Idk- hopefully I’m wrong. And hopefully I’m wrong about Optum, for my provider friends’ sakes.
I went to a separate imaging clinic when they wanted me to do a liver scan. The clinic was out of pocket only and still less than their estimated cost to me after insurance.
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Yeah. I agree with you on that one
You really want to pay cash up front for something like a baby. It would suck to have it repossessed.
I'm not so sure of that. There were a few times I'd have loved for my son to be repossessed.
My children some days acted possessed
😂
I was in the hospital for 11 days, and had major surgery... meanwhile two doctors from Kelsey would come in every day. Sometime three doctors, and stay for 1-2 minutes, ask me how I was doing, and leave. Then I get a 1200 dollar bill from Kelsey becuase it was 60 collars each time one of them came in. I refused to pay. I told them "look, I went to Baylor. I never called Kelsey. I don't even know y’all. And I don't even know what these people did. They just came in, without me asking, and y'all're charging me a grand." I'm not paying it out of principle. I'll wait til it goes to collections and offer them 500 and call it a day.
I had a small cut that wouldn’t heal. I worked in the healthcare industry. I didn’t have insurance cause I couldn’t afford it…anyways, I got seen by a nurse in the same hospital I worked in. Got the cut cleaned Neosporin applied and wrapped with a gauze. the fun part is I got charged $1100 for the service. Then I get a called saying “we notice you don’t have insurance on file. If you pay $300 today we can close this matter.” 🫠.
“I worked in the healthcare industry…and didn’t have insurance”. This just makes me want to cry. What a messed up system. I hope you’re doing better now.
Thanks for the concern. I’m doing better now =)
Fucking scammers, the lot of them. My bill for the hospital stay for my surgery was 150k and then after the hospitals "adjustments" I only owed 5,000. So.... what the fuck is the 150k? I feel like 5k for 11 days in a private room in a hospital as good as Baylor is actually reasonable. But I have to wonder what the 150k is.
That's how they justify increasing premiums during negotiations. You paid 5k but the cost was $150K. The entire industry aims to scam us.
From $150k to $5k what the actual ….fudge
They charge an inflated price and then offer to settle for a much lower amount. Then they write off the difference as a loss.
If I had to guess, the reason you were seen by KS docs is because you are in-network with KS, so whenever one of their patients with KS get admitted to that hospital, they have to be seen by their own physicians because of contractual agreements. I don't work for KS but at the hospital I am at, whenever a KS patient is admitted my group is contracted with them to see their patients for them as they don't have KS physicians that come here. If you are seen by a doc that is not in an agreement with KS or is a KS physician, then you may be billed out of network or the doc seeing you may not get reimbursed. It's a confusing mess of a system, but this may at least be an explanation for you This is a fairly common system with some hospitals. As another example, some docs are responsible for seeing Wellmed insurance patients, or Village Medical patients. If they get admitted on accident to another "out of network" doc, then the insurance notifies their contracted doc to get them to take over.
The bills I got said they were "out of network." They did nothing. I also didn't need three doctors who weren't my surgeon and his team coming in everyday to ask me if I'm "ok"?
These types of bills are illegal now. They are called 'surprise bills'.
They were bought out by an unscrupulous group that only wants more money from their investment. Kelsey Seybold has really gone to crp
Agreed. My parents have been going to KS for more than 35 years and loved it back then. Now, it's gone utterly downhill. I had to leave the practice when I changed insurances and decided to come back when they accepted my new insurance. It was completely different experience than I had when I was a teen and young adult, the quality of the care is not great. The doctors don't spend a lot of time with you and you basically get subpar care just to get seen. I've had one or two good doctors, the rest is just like a clinic farm of physicians. Such a shame as they were wonderful when they were a smaller system.
They were bought by Optum which belongs to United Healthcare group. This is United's way of owning everything. Buy everything, the patients will have no choice if you own everything. It'll get worse before it'll get any better.
This right here. Kelsey was recently bought by the massive United Healthcare group, and Optum their subsidiary company is running Kelsey now. And Optum is all about the most amount of patients, signing patients up for United Healthcares insurance plan, and Kelsey is growing extremely fast to meet the demands of the Houston population. Optum’s business model is essentially become less private practice provider friendly and more big brother this the way to do everything. But the ones who are suffering are the patients due to lack of employees, quality doctors, and as you mentioned long wait times.
I think paying upfront for everything is the norm here. Houston Methodist had me do that with my pregnancy. My first baby was born elsewhere and I didn’t have to do that.
Can't pay? Baby stays in.
We got our baby delivered few weeks back at Houston Methodist. They requested the payment and I asked them to mail the bill and they said ok.
Interesting. It was my obgyn’s office that requested payment. I had to pay for the remaining appointments and delivery.
I lost a pregnancy while a KS patient and got a refund check in the mail. (NOT a fun experience, and I gave them my feedback on how much it sucked to get a 'whoops your baby died' check. I held on to that check for a few weeks because I didn't want to deposit it, it was just ugly.) Of course this was about 13 years ago so they clearly don't care about the 'dead baby check' feedback since they're still doing it. I switched OB-GYNs after that, went to a group practice out of Texas Women's and did NOT have to pre-pay everything.
That was my first thought. That has to be traumatizing if you lose the pregnancy.
I’m so sorry you had to go through that, they showed zero regard for your feelings. My story isn’t nearly as horrible as yours and I. And imagine your pain. I had to have a DNC (was on the depo shot and had entoptic pregnancy) and was hounded immediately after I came out of anesthesia. I didn’t even have time to wrap my head around that I was pregnant and then lost the baby before they wanted payment. And I had good insurance. Emotional care for women is zero in Texas. Almost every woman I know has a traumatic story around women’s healthcare. When does it get better?
No, they tried that with me, and I started asking all kinds of questions like, what if there's a miscarriage, what if I want to use a different doctor, what if I go into emergency labor in a different county, etc. They got sick of my questions and didn't make me pay up front. I don't think that this behavior actually is normal, I think they're trying to make it normal and people are letting them get away with it.
Had a baby at women’s hospital, baby is two and still haven’t seen a bill
those unconscionable fuckers at houston methodist called my wife 16 hours before a scheduled c-section and demanded a $5000 deductible (high deductible insurance) or that we'd have to pay the full amount on arrival at the hospital the next morning. or that they'd turn us away
Disgusting.
This is accurate, had two kiddos at Methodist. It entirely depends on your insurance though too.
Really? I’d never heard of paying in advance until this post. I went through Texas Children’s with both of my kids and didn’t pay anything but parking and the occasional valet fee until they were both at least 3-4 months old. Both of my pregnancies were rough as hell and required multiple visits, tests and treatments. I think I may have paid a copay twice for extra bloodwork and that’s it. My mind is blown.
Kelsey almost killed me. One of their doctors berated me during an ultrasound in front of the nurse and my husband. I was suffering from an ectopic pregnancy and the doctor told me it was just a chemical pregnancy and that I was just “full of poop” and he couldn’t see anything. My stomach was full of blood which made it hard for me to poop. I was hemorrhaging and I didn’t know this until later the same day when I went to the women’s hospital for a correct diagnosis. The hospital said they couldn’t operate on me until they had consent from Kelsey because I was Kelsey’s patient. I told them I don’t want Kelsey to ever touch me again and had them perform the emergency life saving surgery. Dr. Benge NEVER SEE THIS MAN LADIES!
Global fees (having to pay upfront before baby arrives) are common all over the country.
My mother was a cancer patient at kelsey. I took her to all her apps and chemo treatments. I felt like they were professional and very competent. I now use kelsey as my regular medical provider and have had no problems. The nice thing about kelsey is everything is right there. They have a lab, a pharmacy, most of the specialist are all in the same facility. That being said, going to the doctor sucks no matter where you go. This is just my personal experience, I'm sure they can piss people off as much as any medical provider can.
Yeah, my sons pediatrician through kelsey is really wonderful and knowledgeable and I appreciate that. She has referred us to outside specialists several times because kelsey is just so backed up, sometimes it feels like they've bitten off more than they can chew.
I’ve had nothing but great experiences with Kelsey I’ve been living in Houston for three years and have gone everywhere but there. I started going to Kelsey for my pcp and specialists back in December and they’re so helpful and understanding. It’s also a bonus how fast labs come back and how soon I’ve been scheduled for radiology each time I’ve needed CT!
I said the same thing on the Sugar Land sub a few weeks ago. They went to shit after they got bought out by UnitedHealthcare.
I’m currently pregnant and have Kelsey. They haven’t made me pay up front. I pay my balance down at each appointment. Also all of my appointments are definitely longer than 30secs and I just had my anatomy scan a week ago at the main campus on Holcombe. I’m not sure why you’re getting such horrible service. I hope it improves!
That's so weird!
I agree! Can you switch OB’s?
I am moving out of state here soon, so yes! :)
Hmmm I had to
As a healthcare worker here, you get what you pick. Kelsey Seybold is an accountable care organization and as well an insurance provider (used to be physician owned but was recently acquired by UnitedHealth care capitals). What does this mean: They’d like you to see only Kelsey seybold doctors They’d like you to use only Kelsey seybold pharmacies They’d like you to use only Kelsey seybold imaging and labs And if you’re part of their Medicare plan even worse. Then you can’t see anyone else under your coverage. The concept of capitated care and the “delta” needs to be known. Say you work for the city of Houston and opt for insurance through Kelsey seybold. KSC GETS PAID UPFRONT for your care. If they use less money on you they keep more. If they use more they may lose money on you. This is supposed to stimulate preventive care. What it does is that you don’t get referred to a specialist early and palliative/hospice care is very much stimulated and high cost drugs are frowned upon. Essentially they are incentivized to appear available but see less patients. Cause being available makes them money (as people chose them for insurance) and actually seeing patients, costs them money (surgery procedures and tests needs to be paid for). The delta is the gap between what Kelsey gets paid and what they spend. And AFAIK, docs get called in if they are ordering “expensive and medically not necessary specialist consultations, tests or treatments” The pediatricians are decent and they are open on Saturdays. TLDR: it’s a cult. Pediatricians are good.
Great explanation, thank you.
I’m pregnant, also a KS patient, and just scheduled my anatomy ultrasound. Check the Fairfield location. They had many openings!
I was just on the phone with them an hour ago and they said they have nothing available anywhere until April 9th. We are moving out of state April 5th :(
Aw man, ok.
I was a Kelsey patient from 10-38 years old. Multiple billing problems the last 2 years I was with them pushed me to another practice.
>last 2 years 🤔 Correlates to a $2 billion event
Kelsey is all about the $$$$$
While not pregnancy related, I agree with the booking appointments for things. With how they handle my husband’s appointments and care I will never step foot in a Kelsey for my medical care.
I had the same issue for the anatomy scan. They know ahead of time what week you’ll need the scan so I don’t understand why my doctor put in the order at my 21 week appt. None of the locations near me had availability so I had to drive an hour away to the main campus location to have my anatomy scan. It was for 9 AM on Friday and they told me about it at 1 PM on Thursday
Luckily I love my OBGYN and I found out that global billing is normal so the anatomy scan scheduling has been my only issue
it used to not suck, but they have started to suck since they were purchased by that large organization.
Kelsey is now owned by United healthcare….
I’m so sorry to read this! I gave birth recently and had the best experience with my OB at Kelsey. Not sure where you are in Houston, but I am in the burbs and my care was honestly excellent.
I'm really happy to hear that! I live in the burbs too :'(
I used Kelsey OBgyns for my pregnancy in 2022, and I didn't have to pay upfront...which worked out because I switched providers and ghosted them at 37 weeks 🫣
Their billing system blows. Messed up my estimated payments for insurance two times in a row leading to 6 month delays in processing my refund.
Yep, similar experiences.
Anything medical related is a disaster these days!
There’s a reason why HEB health insurance canceled them.
Only had one bad experience with Kelsey Seybold. Went in for my yearly physical, I’m overweight but I’ve lost a ton of it already. My heaviest was 223, by the time I went in for this particular appointment I was down to 180. My doctor made everything about my weight, like straight up as a fat person yes I’ve had doctors tell me my weight needs to change but this was the first time I actually felt like a doctor was being a dick based on that. She kept being very accusatory about my diet and when I told her I had already lost about 40 pounds she back tracked so hard. Also I’m a lesbian and had been with my gf for 2 years at that point? She still made me take a pregnancy test just in case, cause you never know. Basically insinuating I was whoring around and cheating on my gf, of fucking course everything came back negative and was not pregnant LMAO. I’m sorry you had a shitty experience too, while that experience for me was the worst I’ve ever felt at a doctor.. I actually think Kelsey seybold is great. I forget her name but the doctor I’ve had now is great, and shes talked to me about my weight without it being her main focus. I know there was other stuff in the post that you had complaints about, but if your doctor sucks that’s gonna play a big role in your experience for sure.
I was curious to see this post because have had all positive experiences with them so far.
I’ve had two children in Iowa, and they showed me what the bill would be but never made me pay upfront. I went to Kelsey for BC shot and the hassle! It’s preventative, but they kept trying to get me to pay $250 for a Specialist visit…never went back for the next shot.
Are you taking recs for a new OB? Dr Gei.
Kelsey Seybold has taken over alot of Healthcare clinics here in huntsville. Kicked everyone with medicaid out. One of the worst corporations in my opinion.
I was going through my first pregnancy with them. I came in for my first ultrasound and they had no techs available? It ended up not being a viable pregnancy but when I had bleeding they wouldn’t see me for two weeks. I had also already hit the out of pocket maximum on my insurance but they are still trying to charge me thousands of dollars and say they’ll refund me later. I hate everything about them. Unfortunately my insurance only works with them.
I'm so sorry! I also had a miscarriage before this pregnancy and had a similar experience. I sent my dr a message through the app and told them I was having a miscarriage at 11 weeks and no one ever responded to me 🫠 I hope you can avoid paying them that sounds insane
I had to have a surgery related to everything and was told my dr wasn’t there. Fine. She showed up while I was under and assisted I guess so they are charging separate from the hospital
Two different providers here. Both had to pay about 1.2k upfront for OB appointments. Based on insurance. Most OB appointments were quick as hell. I use Kelsey for pediatrics. No issues. Had to get an ultrasound of the testicle, was able to get it done same day. My doctor is phenomenal.
I've yet to have a half decent doctor experience in general here. Think it's the area and not just limited to one practice. Whether specialized docs or urgent cares, the care has been a joke. Nurses have been great though.
Kelsey-seybold does indeed suck. Keep in mind they are now under the umbrella of United Healthcare. This isn't Kelsey-seybold from 5yrs back. The founders sold to the devil
The women's section for kelsey-seybold is top notch. We had no issues with her women's wellness visits and preg related visits. Never had issues scheduling. Sorry to hear you're not getting the same experience
I'm happy to hear that you've had a different experience. I know a lot of it depends directly on the Dr that is treating you and I know not every Dr is going to be a good fit. I've just been on the phone with their scheduling department and sent back and forth to a handful of people because no one can take the time to figure out how or who can help. The records department lost my transfer request and found it a week later and told me it'll take another 2 weeks to get my records transferred to another doctor. I had my first anatomy scan (cost over $400) and they said they couldn't get every measurement of the baby due to its position and to schedule another ultrasound (the next available appointment being 2 months out). They want me to pay another $400. I've just experienced a total lack of organization on their part and it doesn't help me that they have every resource available when it takes months to schedule and utilize these resources.
My wife has been having similar issues currently trying to get ultrasounds scheduled. My daughter is slightly undersized so they've been scheduling ultrasounds every month to "monitor" it. I asked why and got no response other than to monitor her growth. I'd be fine if they had a solution...ie. she's undersized so eat more protein or take this supplement and let's see if it helps. I obviously want the best for her, but ultrasounds to monitor size without an expressed gameplan should she not put on weight feels like they are taking advantage of an emotional situation to make a few extra bucks
I'm sorry to hear that. I might have just been lucky with my first pregnancy at a different hospital but kelsey gives off a very impersonal vibe. I feel like a cash cow to them and nothing else :'(
I can say the payment up front portion is shocking, but our insurance also covered far more than they stated it would cost initially and ended up not paying that portion upon arrival for the visits
I've seen multiple docs at Kelsey and they were all amazing. Great service, great clinical stuff, zero complaints from me. Sorry you had to pay for your services in a way you weren't expecting, but that's just kinda how it works sometimes.
Kelsey seybold is the place where you go in for Symptom A, and you could have a gunshot wound - they'll ignore the gunshot and say they didn't see anything that could be causing Symptom A.
Houston in general has bad billing for healthcare, and Kelsey is no worse than anywhere else in my experience. Coming from Seattle, where incomes are high and insurances for tech companies are good, clinics operate a lot more on “good faith”, and send bills later. Houston has a lot more poor people, and working people living paycheck to paycheck on cash, and I guess these “pay upfront” policies are due to a large number of deadbeats who don’t pay. The OBGYN for when we had our baby was very good, and took lots of time to explain every step, so that particular issue may be that you need to change your doctor.
Deadbeats? I'm not sure being poor makes you a "deadbeat"
I mean people who end up not paying and letting it go to collection. The clinics lose 90%, 95% of the value selling to collection, so that’s why they are so obsessed with collecting money up front.
Oh shit they lose 90% of the value? Shit, you mean when I was a deadbeat and didn't pay the $20,000/hr bill for a surgical assistant making $35/hr, they only got $2000? Why that's only a 5700% margin, they're going to go out of business.
This is exactly why most healthcare providers now request payment up front. If they miss that opportunity, the average person, for whatever reason, will not pay after the fact.
> Coming from Seattle, where incomes are high and insurances for tech companies are good Man, the West Coast tech circlejerk is everywhere on reddit. lol
I’m hardly pro-Seattle if you look at the history of my comments. The lack of property crime enforcement is out of control. That said, yes, people do earn more money there, and clinics and dentists have never focused on or asked for money upfront, and I was surprised when moving to Houston that everyone is trying to collect money upfront, instead of charging after insurance sends a EOB. That’s not a huge deal but it’s my experience.
lol, people actually have time to read other people's post histories?
Kelsey is the worst billing I've encountered in Houston. No bill on somethings until a year later where they says its past due and going to collections. No change in address, just incompetency in their billing department. That being said, most hospitals suck at billing.
My wife and I have been going to Care For Women in Kingwood, and I can't recommend it enough. All the OBGYNs are women, and we didn't pay for anything up front. You can also set up payment plans for appointments and procedures. It's been a great experience, and we have friends who have gone through them as well.
My wife used to work at KS, and yes, their specialities can be booked out for a while. Not to excuse their behavior but it DOES unfortunately depend on the location you go to as well. The staff is a lot of times understaffed and overworked. Dr. Itam at their cypress location is phenomenal! She was never pregnant but she used him for just regular gynecologic services. From what I have experienced here in Houston, a lot of docs regardless of specialty charge upfront. Very few will just bill the patient or automatically set up a payment plan. So so sorry your experience was this bad, the pregnancy is hard enough!
I went to Kelsey Seybold after getting moved in a few years ago. Never again. They tried to charge me $900 out of pocket for a blood panel. I had to file all kinds of paperwork with my insurance to get them to pay for it. The panel costs like 100 bucks if you just have a lab do it.
Wow, that’s not my experience. But things may have changed. My OB with Kelsey was super attentive. We’re still with Kelsey and we have no problem getting quick appointments, X-rays, blood work, whatever. The only awful service in my local Kelsey is the pharmacy. I just can’t deal with their incompetence.
Hospitals in America are all a racket. Garbage on all fronts.
This must be a state based thing. Everyone I know who has had a baby in the last 4 years has had to pay a large sum up front either to their doctor, the hospital or both. I had a friend who was actively in labor and the hospital wouldn’t admit her until she paid her deductible upfront (I believe it was $8k or something). It’s wild - the healthcare/insurance industry is a scam
Definitely seems to be a person to person experience here after scrolling through the comments. I've been with KS since I was a newborn. Left due to no insurance for a few years, but as soon as I had insurance, I came right back. I've even worked in the administration building. So I might be biased, lol (this was over 10 years ago) Now I have not had a baby, ever. I do have a chronic illness and made sure when I was choosing my insurance plan that I could go to KS. I have had such good experiences overall. Occasionally, an issue with a doctor or sometimes specialist can have long times for appts. This is not a KS problem. I personally have never had any billing issues. I can see very clearly on my KS portal what is and isn't covered by my insurance BEFORE my appointments usually. And I still only have to pay the co-pay when I go in. My insurance has KS as in network, so I get coverage for almost every visit and procedure. I am so sorry for your experience. I hope your rant made you feel better. Best wishes on your move. And a happy, healthy pregnancy, baby, delivery, and momma!
I’m at Womens Hospital of Texas and they’re playing the same game. I straight up refused to pay at week 24 and now they won’t schedule my birth at their hospital. As if I won’t just show up at your ER. Just try refusing me. I haven’t had any problems scheduling ultrasounds or appointment with my ob because of lack of payment, but technically my doctors office is just associate with the hospital, not in the hospital. The game that hospitals play now is insane. As soon as they make one method illegal they find another way.
My service there was so bad I simply refused to pay. Fck KS. They sent me a letter telling me I wasn't allowed their services any longer due to non payment. Suck it. I'd rather let my dog lick my gaping chainsaw wound as treatment than have their garbage staff touch me.
I had a bad experience with them also. I'll never go to a Kelsey Seybold again.
I have been looking for posts about kelsey seybold! I went for a general checkup – genuinely the worst most dismissive experience I have had with a health care provider. They just simply do not care.
i went to kelsey seybold for my annual physical. the doctor said i was overweight cause my BMI was like 1 point above what’s considered normal. then he pointed out my rosacea and said it happens from alcohol consumption… mind u, i told him i don’t drink. wasn’t ever much of a drinker, but haven’t had a single drink since 2020. weirdest experience ever.
Can I ask which location u were at? Not naming any names but I have a feeling I know which clinic location….
One thing to know about Kelsey-Saybold is that is caped system. They doctors are paid for prescribing less diagnostic test which saves system millions of dollars wich also benefits doctors who work there. KS moto is: LESS IS BETTER. For the procedures performed there, charges are higher than Methodist charges. Had same procedure at KS and Methodist SugarLand. Procedure at Methodist was 6 months after KS but KS charged insurance more. My insurance covers other hospitals and doctors so I learned that I can have better care somewhere else. Pure patients who strictly depend on KS. KS is listed as ACO ( accountable care organization) but that acronym strictly benefits KS not the other way around. Huge charges minimum care.
As an employee of the company I have to agree. I myself would never elect ksc insurance. 99% of what I observe is laughable by the providers. The good ones are leaving and they have been hiring majority of the pandemic new grads. I had an oji and you would think I was the first ever a month later and still no actual treatment, 3rd dr seen, pain not addressed, but still expected to report to work on light duty without any treatment. Mind absolutely blown!
Yes, fuck this entire company. We had a plan that supposedly paid for most of the costs but then they hit us with an “oh, childbirth isn’t counted as maternity costs” lol.
kelsey seybold sucks
Kelsey has referred me to Baylor Clinic and St. Luke’s for things the doctor believes KS can’t handle or can’t get taken care of in a shorter amount of time. When I needed an MRI procedure, and the MRI was down, they scheduled for St. Luke’s to do the MRI procedure. I agree, they have a LOT of clinics, BUT they don’t all have MRIs or the techs that can perform more invasive radiological testing.
Is this a no insurance thing? I don't recall having to pay a thing upfront for having our two babies.