CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Visiting the doctor can be stressful and time consuming, but for many, the most frustrating part of a doctor's exam is dealing with pharmacies and insurance.
Many in the medical field say that insurance companies often run interference when doctors are trying to provide optimal patient care, resulting in weeks -- if not months -- of high wait times for patients.
"I just gave up and decided to go to cash only," said Dr. Edward Shoemaker, OB-GYN and owner of Innovation in Women's Health in Corpus Christi, Texas.
He said it's a transition many doctors are making when it comes to the payment methods they accept. The reasoning – not wanting to deal with the headaches caused by insurance companies.
"We write an order to do that procedure, we have everything lined up, we have to call and they stay on the phone for hours to get the special approval," Shoemaker said. "Doctors just throw up their hands and say, 'I don't want to jack with this.' "
These kinds of interactions can be a constant source of frustration, not just for doctors, but for the patients as well.
"I've had patients that have had blood transfusions for several months in a row because we can't get them taken care of," he said.
Doctors often have to jump through hoops to prescribe medications, only to still be met with red tape.
"One time they may go and they may get their medication, believe it or not, for free," Shoemaker said. "And the next time they go it may be for $30 or so."
That's if the medication can even be purchased.
"Sometimes we have the understanding patients, sometimes we have the not so understanding ones," former pharmacy technician Joe Michael Salinas said.
Salinas said he is all too familiar with helping patients navigate the complexity of their insurance. He said it was often his job to be middleman between the doctor and their patient.
"Frustrating for everyone on all parts because, you know, one, we're sending off information, we're playing the waiting game," he said. "Patient's probably annoyed, especially because they need that medication."
To make matters worse, in the era of the computer, Shoemaker said dealing with insurance has taken on a new level of frustration.
"Trying to get a human being on the phone that you can have a conversation with and explain what the problem is next to impossible," he said.