new verification procedure with 1800 contacts

**Ray Parent** · 07-30-2004, 09:03 PM

Like many of us, I don't really care for 1800contacts. They send the fax, I do the verification online, its the law so I comply.

Today however, there was a new twist... I got a telephone recording with the information, (this was a first for me btw) just went into reading off the info with no warning. Now I get another call about 10 seconds after the first call, so I switched lines. Low and behold it was another verification for the same patient, but with a different voice on the recording. Shortly after the second call starts my 3rd and final line in the office rings, now I have no idea why I did this but I had placed the first line on hold and did the same with the second and picked up the 3rd which happened to be an actual patient. I asked my patient to hold while I went back and dropped the first 2 lines. I ended up spending a few minutes talking with the patient and when I was finished I noticed there was voice mail. Guess what, it was a 3rd recording from 1800 about the same patient with a 3rd voice, I wasn't able to understand enough of the recording to make any sense of it though.

Well pointless as it was, I muttered a few things and decided to call 1800 contacts and voice my opinion. I attempted in vain to get in contact with some sort of supervisior but all they would do was switch me over to what was essentially a complaint voice mail. My response was a message stating they need to have the courtesy to have a live person call me or just fax me the verification, I am not going to put their recordings ahead of other calls or patients I am currently working with.

So I end up with them calling me 3 times in 30 seconds, getting no useful infor mation, sending a pointless voice mail, and they will probably fill the perscription of a patient that hasn't been in the office in 5 years. And in the eyes of the law I am the bad guy.

**harry888** · 07-30-2004, 10:48 PM

I use it to my advantage, somewhat.

I despise the phone calls and the waste of time lenghty automated redundantcy. A real person calling would just cost them too much.

I hang up on the automated calls, but only after I hear the name so I can make a note in the chart that the patients are getting the lenses through an alternate source.

It's constant that those individuals show up at the office asking for free trials while they wait for their mail order lenses come in.

**ikon44** · 07-31-2004, 04:01 AM

Originally Posted by harry888

I use it to my advantage, somewhat.

I despise the phone calls and the waste of time lenghty automated redundantcy. A real person calling would just cost them too much.

I hang up on the automated calls, but only after I hear the name so I can make a note in the chart that the patients are getting the lenses through an alternate source.

It's constant that those individuals show up at the office asking for free trials while they wait for their mail order lenses come in.

good call Harry, I have started charging mail order clients, a much higher aftercare fee than my loyal clients who order their lenses through me.I am quite
upfront about it and explain that as a business i have to have a certain amount of revenue from each client .Therefore if they want to benefit from
my 23 years experience in fitting lenses they have to pay a realistic fee as i will be getting no revenue from them purchasing lenses.

some opt to pay the fee, some switch back to buying their lenses from me and some go elsewhere, the ones that do go elsewhere are usually the freeloaders that want everything for nothing.

**optiboarder** · 08-05-2004, 01:22 AM

I believe the recording gives you an option to comply or refuse. Like, "press 1 to accept, press 2 to refuse" or something. I got a phone call the other day. Guess which one I pressed.

**mswscco** · 08-05-2004, 01:52 AM

One Saturday morning, got to the office and had 3 messages from 1800, all for the same patient. It was like the answering machine kept hanging up on the caller who had to call back and continue the message. Interesting this was each subsequent message seemed to pick up exactly where the previous one ended, even if it was mid-sentence. So far, all our requests from 1800 have been for expired Rx's, so they've been nothing but a help in reminding us of a patient who needs a recall.

**LENNY** · 08-05-2004, 07:15 PM

I bet you that your patients with expired RXs still got the contacts that they ordered!

did you check that?

**Luckyshot** · 08-05-2004, 10:59 PM

I've only had it once. At some point in the msg it asks if you'd rather have the fax sent to you. I chose that option and let my Dr Tech handle it . I HATE being called by a machine worse than most anything.

**Luckyshot** · 08-05-2004, 10:59 PM

Originally Posted by LENNY

I bet you that your patients with expired RXs still got the contacts that they ordered!

did you check that?

How can you check it?

**Jedi** · 08-05-2004, 11:03 PM

Originally Posted by Luckyshot

How can you check it?

Call the patient.

**harry888** · 08-05-2004, 11:07 PM

I'd like to amend my response to Ray's original post.

Now, I'm getting the phone calls instead of FAX's and it is a PIA. Hang up and they call again and again. I've no problem talking to a person, but I need to pull a file when they call.

Recording takes absolutly forever to get any info.

I'll bet the change from the FAX is because they wish to become a "victim" that noone will release an RX.

They probably lost too much business on the FAX system. Supposedly, they had a big loss last quarter again according to Vision E-mail by jobson.

Harry

**Luckyshot** · 08-05-2004, 11:09 PM

Originally Posted by Jedi

Call the patient.

You really think they'll tell you if they're buying contacts on their expired RX?

**Johns** · 08-05-2004, 11:21 PM

1-800 contact has actually increased our contact lens sales. When we get a call, we call the patient, tell them to come down to the office for their "bonus" lenses. We give them the trials (because they're almost aways out), but only after they pre-pay for their supply of contacts. If they're expired, they have to pre-pay for the exam as well. Most are appreciative of their "instant" contacts, and we retain the patient.

Ironic or not, I don't believe that 800 contacts has filled many of our expired rx's, because the patients usually call us soon after if we haven't contacted them first.

**optiboarder** · 08-10-2004, 11:54 PM

Worse come to worse, we match the price. And there's no shipping fee. Customers never call back to 1-800-contacts.

**fvc2020** · 08-11-2004, 12:14 PM

i received a call from them this morning. It stated that it would continue to call until we answered. I personally think this is harassment. I called the patient since was expired and advised I would not be authorizing her boxes. She had just been here and we gave her lenses to get her to her exam......

Christina

**Johns** · 08-11-2004, 09:45 PM

The faxes have stopped, and now we're getting the calls. There is no possible way to talk to a human. The number to call back does not let you verify the rx, it just puts you into a voice mailbox. It's not as easy to contact your patient before the sale this way.

What would happen if every Optiboarder (I am not suggesting this) would to call 1-800 Contacts all at the same time (or at different times) throughout the day, just to ask questions? If the White House switchboard can be shut jammed up, I'm sure 1-800 contacts could be. (Again, this is a hypothetical question, and I am not suggesting that we all do this at 12:00 noon on any certain day).

They are harrassing us, I'd love to see the favor returned.:bbg:

**LENNY** · 08-11-2004, 09:50 PM

Email!!!
Bad sugestion!

**Johns** · 08-12-2004, 06:48 AM

(It was not a suggestion)

**Ray Parent** · 08-12-2004, 02:17 PM

I got this faq from the AOA newsletter a few days ago. http://www.aoa.org/eweb/Documents/FinalFCLCARule.pdf

section 26 appears to specificly exlude this type of communication.

section 35 gives instructions on filing a complaint, which is what I am going to do every time I get this sort of call. If its a recorded call during business hours, its going to get reported.

**mooga** · 08-12-2004, 09:40 PM

I had the same problem. They would call with a voice recording, I would hang up the phone & it would ring again instantly and the same recording would be continuing its speal. I wouldn't mind doing a verification on the phone if they didn't speak like the "micro machine" guy talking a mile a minute. It's probably a way to get the patient's contacts put through without getting rejected as often. Anyway the resolution to the problem was we faxed a hand written confirmation requesting fax confirmations only. The problem seemed to have ended.

**Jedi** · 08-12-2004, 11:39 PM

Call blocking might work to stop all calls from them.

**LENNY** · 08-13-2004, 08:39 PM

Call blocking sounds verrrrry good!
you can also do it on your fax line.
The only problem i can see that they may have 50 different lines that they use to cal and fax.
Does caller ID shows the # it is calling from?
If it does not you will have to block all blocked calls.
The patients may complain!