Patient First Most Expensive PPD Skin Test (TB Test) I've Received Feasterville Pennsylvania

About a month and a half ago, I dropped by a Patient First because I needed to have recent TB test results for my teaching job. I have a primary care physician, but I opted to go to a clinic because I needed the results as soon as possible. Before dropping by the clinic, I had called and researched the common price of TB tests without insurance coverage. (I knew that it probably wouldn't be covered by my insurance, as it was an unaffiliated medical center.) The price ranged from about $22-35. So when I walked into Patient First, little did I fathom that I was about to unwittingly drop about 4 to 5 times the amount I had expected to. In hindsight, I should have backed out of there right away...

Red Flag #1: When I inquired about the pricing of a TB shot, they couldn't tell me! When I asked how much it would cost without insurance coverage, they still couldn't tell me. They didn't have "set prices," they said. But I thought, "How much could it cost anyway?" Expecting at most an exaggerated price of $60, and out of desperation, I went ahead with the TB shot.

Red Flag #2: Well, after the brief visit, I received a bill for a whopping $159. Of course I called billing services to inquire about the bill.

Red Flag #3: They "weren't sure exactly" why my bill came out to $159, when the price of a TB shot costs "$37" (the exact words of the representative I spoke to). So, did they indeed have an exact price for this all along? I was confused... They said they would put my account on hold for 45 days to figure it out. I asked again and again to make sure that all I needed to do was wait for a response. They said, "Yup. Just sit tight until you receive the next statement."

Red Flag #4: At about the 45-day mark, I receive a second statement. No explanation, just a statement in the same amount with an added LATE FEE. Of course I call billing services again. At this point, I have two questions: "Why the late fee?" and "What exactly am I being charged $159 for?! Why is it 4, 5 times the amount of other clinics/urgent care centers?"

Red Flag #5: When I explained the situation and asked, "Why the late fee?" the representative responded, "Well, since the balance is your responsibility, and you didn't pay the first statement, the late fee was added on. I restated, "But she said she would put my account on hold... that all I needed to do was wait for the next statement..." He again repeated, "Yes, but you owe the balance, and this is your second statement. That's why the late fee was added on." 

SERIOUSLY?! How irresponsible and misleading is that? The representative I spoke to the first time certainly had not explained the part about the late fee to me. In disbelief, I asked my next question, as calmly as I could muster, "So, can you please tell me for what exactly I am being charged $159 for, and why this is more than 4 times the normal range?" To this, he had no answer. He said, "Sorry, I don't know... It's for the TB shot."

Well, as soon as I got off the phone, I made out a check to Patient First, also indicating that A) I will never be using their services again, and B) that a complaint would be filed for their unexplained exorbitant pricing. People need to know. Avoid Patient First if you can. Go to any other clinic that can actually give you a price range for their services.