My experiences thus far with Dr. Kass have been pleasant. He is a soft-spoken man who seems knowledgeable in his field. He has been helping with some foot problems, and we are making progress. We are using a combination of laser treatment, creams, and medication to address some skin problems I have been having for years. I never thought much of it, so I just ignored it. But we are working on that now.

His office is a typical doctor’s office, though he has one room that looks quite cluttered and disorganized. Still, I do not let that influence my opinion of him as a physician.

His front desk staff is a solo, older lady. She appears nice and has always been okay to deal with. At times, I have observed her overwhelmed while trying to get things done. She seems to get stressed at times, and I feel for her. They did forget to set me up with a call that I required once, but other than that, they have honored all their commitments to me.

They have someone who handles their billing and financial matters, and I have had a challenging experience with this person. I went for another treatment, and while Dr. Kass was in the back, the front desk lady informed me that he would not see me unless I paid the balance my insurance had not yet covered.

I explained several times that there was an issue with my insurance after changing jobs, but that it was addressed just yesterday and they would be submitting payment to all the doctors I have seen. The balance was $90, not a large amount that would impact either of us significantly.

Since I had just taken care of that and my insurance assured me payment was forthcoming, I declined to pay, knowing it would be difficult to get reimbursed. I asked to speak with the billing coordinator to clarify anything unclear. I noticed the front desk lady becoming stressed and she indicated that would not be possible. Dr. Kass was in the back, and I assumed he was listening.

I decided to leave, telling her that at some point soon they would receive payment or contact from Aetna, and perhaps at a future date we could reconvene. I made clear I was not going to pay money that I knew for certain was already on its way. I also acknowledged that the situation was not her fault, and since speaking with the billing person was not an option, there was no point in dragging things out further. All I lost was the time I spent commuting, and I accepted that.

Again, I believe Dr. Kass was listening from the back and did not respond. Because of this experience, I have lost some respect for the practice and am unsure if I will return. Relationships matter, and I believe he could have come out to speak with me rather than remaining distant. I like the doctor, but this situation was disappointing.

To be fair, the doctor is good based on my experience so far. His administrative assistant is a kind woman but seems easily stressed and has difficulty with unusual situations like mine. I chose to leave rather than add to her stress. I would have expected at least contact information for the billing person or Dr. Kass so I could share my concerns. That did not happen, which was disappointing. As for the billing person, I remain frustrated about the lack of communication.