Milton Starr, DDS

The dentist on duty re-glued the lumineer and when I looked at it, I saw it was pushed up too far and is out farther than the other front tooth. Of course, the office help tried to convince me it was fine. Being pushed up makes it not fit my tooth properly. It now looks shorter and crooked. I tried to speak with the office manager but was told she wasn't in. Two days later, I calmed down, talked to her and went in for yet another dentist (I didn't know) to look at it and say he couldn't tell because he hadn't seen it before. I was not happy and told him it is funny. No one in the office could see it wasn't right but me.

So he goes out to see the office manager again. He comes back with two options. 1. We can adjust the tooth to match other tooth. I asked, "How can you? It's glued. He said, "No, no, the other tooth." He wanted to file the lumineer next to it to match the improperly placed lumineer. I gave a flat no! 2. We can have yet another dentist from Maryland come down to evaluate it from one of the main offices. I feel I am being given a runaround so I will give up. But I want my lumineer placed on properly the way it was before. The dentist I had before is no longer at their office, the one who did the first placement of my lumineers. I am 60 years old and feel I'm taken advantage of. This is not the first offense I have dealt with. These things have popped off before and crumbled into pieces. Each time it happened, they made me feel it was my fault. I have been careful with them. I'm afraid to bite with them. I fear they will break. I was told you can use your lumineers like their your teeth. I find that not true. Help please.

I was warmly, overly greeted (fake smile with a judgmental look) by the front desk personnel Jacqueline. I later found out that she's the Office Manager. She asked me to wait in one of the waiting rooms. I observed, while in the waiting room, how dusty and shabby it was. As it was a busy morning, I noticed how Jacqueline was unorganized because she was trying to attend all these people's needs and I could see customers getting frustrated and annoyed because they were not satisfied with her responses.

She was very confused and overwhelmed but tried to look as if she was in control, she was not and everyone could see it. Even the poor inexperienced young people working alongside her at the front desk. When I finally got to the back to be seen, I noticed on the so-called sterile instruments on the trays had "stuff" on the tips. These assistants do not properly clean the tools the dentist use in all patients mouths! This is disgusting and unsanitary! HIV, Hepa B and God only knows what else we as patients could get from them not cleaning the instruments properly!

By the way, Milton Starr is not a person working in the office. They use his name to draw in certain types of people. Not all dentist charge the same. Check around, there is even a dental clinic at Virginia Commonwealth University that charges at least half the price for extensive work or go to the dentist at the Community Health Clinic across from Carl's Ice Cream in F'burg. They do great work there and you won't have to worry about paying for some overcharging dentist new boat! Do yourself a favor...don't waste your valuable time here or your hard earn money. You deserve better.

Somewhere around one year later, I received a bill from Milton Starr DDS for $1500. My insurance did not pay for crowns. I was told by the billing office at Milton Starr that the wrong enrollment code was entered in their system.

I was told I was obligated to pay the outstanding balance. I did not have a copy of the quote they gave me for the crown or I would have proceeded to take this to court. Milton Starr DDS did not give me any paperwork on the price that was quoted to me. I have learnt a $1500 lesson from the experience. I was never satisfied with the service I received from Milton Starr DDS, but I had to go to a preferred dentist under my insurance plan. I have changed my insurance plan and the dentist that I go to. I work 3 jobs to pay the everyday bills. I was able to pay this off with my tax refund in 2009.

On a routine cleaning in the fall of 2007 I was presented with a treatment plan to have a gum recession issue treated. In speaking with the front desk personnel, I requested for them to get a pre-treatment estimate from MetLife of the exact costs my dental insurance would cover and then I would consider having the procedure done. I was later presented with a breakdown of what my cost would be and what the insurance would be covering. Once I was shown what my cost would be ( it was around $275.00 if I can recall, I didn't save the receipt after 2 years ) I scheduled the appointment. I came in to have the procedure done on 10-6-2007 and paid my out of pocket costs.

Fast forward to 9-30-2009 when I received my first bill from Milton Starr Dental showing me I had an unpaid balance of $ 738.70 from the procedure completed on 10-6-2007. I immediately contacted the office and spoke with Ericka in the claims department and expressed my concern over this issue. She was unable to resolve the issue and told me she would have to speak with the Office Manager, Jackolyn. On 10-31-2009 I received another invoice stating my account was seriously past due, again I contacted the office and was told Ericka still needed to speak with the Office Manager about the issue. On 11-14-2009 I received a return phone call from the Office Manager, Jackolyn, she stated it would take her about 2 weeks to investigate and she would get back with me.

I have spoke with my insurance carrier, MetLife and they have stated to me that they never received any pre-treatment request from Milton Starr Dental for this procedure. After doing a little research myself, I find out the Dr. Diaz who works for Milton Starr Dental is not a PDP Network Dentist, and the work that was submitted to Metlife for payment is more then what was completed on me. So from what it looks like to me is the office falsified a pre-authorization to get me to agree to get the work done. Then submitted the claim to my insurance company and it was denied because the procedure is not covered. I would have NEVER agreed to let they perform the work if I knew it wasn't going to be covered. Now Milton Starr Dental after 2 years is sending me a bill for the first time telling me I now owe them $ 738.70. This is a clear case of FRAUD by this practice and needs to be investigated. I hope that you can assist me in this matter and get it resolved promptly.