1 /5 Pola Kuri: I have been extremely disappointed by ARC and the way everything about my visit was handled, and will never come here again.
I scheduled an insurance-covered appointment for a sore throat and was seen by Dr. Margaret L Hemmen in Nov 2023. She was extremely unprofessional. She treated me as if I were a burden and the appointment was rushed. I explained I had a sore throat and she proceeded to test me for strep and COVID WITHOUT my consent. She swabbed me throat when I thought she was just taking a look at the inflammation. When I asked about it, she seemed bothered at the fact that I was surprised and told me she needed to see those results in order to prescribe me medicine. I waited to hear back for over two days with no news (at this point I was starting to feel better on my own). I called the clinic and was told that they "must have missed it", but that the tests came back negative and my prescription should have been on the portal. I checked the portal, but nothing was posted, so I called again. They then told me it would post in a little bit, but that the doctor had recommended I take Tylenol. By now, I was feeling better on my own and was annoyed at the fact that I had spent all this time calling, visiting, and waiting, had been for nothing. I obviously thought this had been a negative experience but decided to put it to rest with no further action.
However, in February of 2024 I get a charge of over $500 for the tests that Margaret ran, again WITHOUT MY CONSENT and without letting me know that would inquire an additional charge. I only came here because the visit was covered by my insurance, but nobody told me that 1. these tests would be done nor that 2. they would be $500 out of pocket. I have reached out to the billing department over email and over the phone- speaking with multiple representatives including Irene and John Narvaez, and they all promised me that they would look into it and get back to me- but none did. In fact, Irene was extremely rude over the phone and treated me as if I were an idiot. Assuming this was being investigated by them, and following their instructions of waiting for them to get back to me with news, I held off, until I began receiving calls from debt collectors letting me know that my charge would now be handled by them. I am beyond disappointed, angry, and honestly indignant at the fact that I was not treated with respect from the beginning. I was lied to, humiliated, and charged for services I did not request, want, nor received- I sincerely do not know how this is legal. When I called ARC after this was sent to debt collectors asking for an explanation, I was told that the claim had been denied but that if I really wanted, a nurse could give me a call "in a few days" to further explain and go over my visit- which again has not happened nor do I expect will happen since they done nothing but lie.
I write this review hoping I am able to spare someone the headache of dealing with ARC and their staff.
