I go to a counselor/pshch monthly. His office is BUSY!! Due to this, he has a policy that states that people who are doing well on their current meds and simply need a refill do not need to come in every month, they can simply pick up prescriptions and not have to sit (for what can be HOURS) at the office to wait for the appointment. I take advantage of this, as for one thing, I have 2 small kids that can't sit still, we live quite a distance away and many times my husband has to work on my appointment days (appointment days are limited to Wed and Sat).

The reason the prescriptions need to be picked up or called in is because they are strictly controlled substances and CANNOT be refilled in the traditional way. A new script must be presented every time. So, due to that, I am stuck either going in there or picking up scripts every month.

My insurance is not accepted by this Dr, I pay cash. There are no other Dr's within a reasonable distance that I can see, and other than the following complaint, I am perfectly happy with this Dr.

OK, time for the complaint... on the "odd" months, when I am just picking up scripts and not seeing the Dr at all, I still have to pay the fee as if I was seeing the Dr. I pay out of pocket, and my husband and I work hard for our money and I just don't understand how he can charge for a "non" appointment. It seems more like he's making money off selling prescriptions (a lot of people do this, both with and without insurance, to avoid the hassle of waiting for hours on end for their appointment.

So is this legal? Or is this some kind of fraud? Honestly, I'd rather just pay the $50 and just breeze in there and get my scripts thaan wait hours on end (even though I feel it's grossly unfair to pay full price for a appt yet not get one! ), but what about the insured who are billed as if they've had a real appointment? I can't help thinking this is some kind of fraud.

The MD is providing you a service and $50 is not an unreasonable price. If you are doing so good why don't you see your regular MD and get the scripts from him? Your insurance will cover a Primary Care MD appointment.

After seeing this post I looked extensively on line for information about this travesty and could find nothing.

This is absurd to me.

I am going to continue my search.

As an aside,you say it is not feasible for you to travel but comparing the time and cost wouldn't it be more cost effective to do so?

Perhaps there is a sliding scale mental health facility you could get treatment at?

Is there any possibility that you could have your script called in to the pharmacy?

I have had narcotics called in for me before and that is a controlled substance.

I am going to keep searching as I find this incredulous.

No, no sliding scale... it's $50 no matter what. It makes no difference if he calls them in or writes them, it's still $50. This just seems unfair and odd. I thought I was paying $50 to see the Dr and have my time with him. To have to pay $50 for2 seconds worth of handwriting is ridiculous! Now, I could agree to some sort of fee for writing the scripts, but certainly not the full appt price!!