Beware of Fraud!

There is no doubt that the Age of Technology has given the World a New Frontier with numerous fantastic opportunities for the advancement of Humanity and for making life better for so many. However, it has also opened the door as never before for Massive Greed, Opportunism, Crime and Runaway Capitalism (as opposed to the valid desire for reaping Reasonable Profits), which have Coarsened our Discourse, and Invited Immoral and Fraudulent Behavior in many sectors. The proverbial “Nigerian Prince” promising Lonely Women Everlasting Love while Bilking them out of their savings is not a lone wolf. He comes in all shapes and sizes. Moreover, he has always existed in one way or another. It is simply that there is much more awareness about such characters then in our pre-Technology Era. That is a good thing, although every day – really, every day – there are incidents and stories of people taking advantage of others, and others being taken advantage of. Hence, I am warning you to Beware of Fraud!

Here is an example that I personally experienced and that I am sharing in order to, hopefully, draw attention to some of the Greed and Opportunism that threatens us from so many supposedly trusted sources.

Dr. (Name Withheld) was my dentist for a long time. I was always extremely satisfied with him personally, as well as with the dental office which my husband and I had picked because our insurance company provided dental services through that provider. During all that time we received excellent care for many, many years. When Dr. (Name Withheld) left that office I continued to see the Dr. (Name Withheld) who took over the practice. However, during my last visit I was told that I had Three Cavities and that I needed a Deep Cleaning. I was provided with an estimate of $318.00 that was my share of the payment. Something did not sit quite right with me after that visit. I sensed that I was not given the correct diagnosis. Ensuing that, I decided to get a second opinion, and made an appointment with my daughter’s private dentist where she and her family have been patients for over twenty years and whom they totally trusted. After a Panoramic X-ray, and a regular cleaning, this is what the Dentist wrote:

“Mrs. Hala Jabbour was seen in our office for a regular checkup and cleaning. X-ray shows no cavities and no need for any other dental work.”

Needless to tell you that my gut feeling regarding the diagnosis that I had been given turned out to be correct, and that I felt totally scammed, lied to and taken advantage of! This was very disappointing from a professional who has vowed to “do no harm!” It was moreover all the more concerning as to how many other patients were being scammed in this unconscionable way!

Why do they do that, you might ask? Money, is the answer. Such outfits sign up to become part of the insurance company network, but they are not satisfied with what has been designated as their payment for the procedures required. They want more! Therefore, they “invent” unneeded and unnecessary problems in order to arrive to the billing amount that would satisfy their Greed.

Of course I will never go back to that office, however, I do hope that such fraud, egregious and despicable offenses do not continue to occur. Hence, Beware of Fraud! Again, it comes from all sorts of sources, and the Medical Profession, much like so many other Professions, is not above this kind of despicable behavior. How do we circumvent such occurrences? I’m afraid that a Second Opinion is probably a costly remedy. Another, is to make sure that we lodge a complaint with the insurance companies, and/or report them to the Better Business Bureau in our state. Of course, we need proper documentation.

I have tens of other stories along these lines that have happened to me personally, and as I found out by talking to friends, Medical Professionals’ and Specialists’ Greed and Invention of unnecessary and unneeded procedures is deplorable. Do you think that anyone in the Corrupt Media would Investigate such matters? No, they won’t, because they themselves are funded by the Corrupt and Greedy Pharmaceutical and Medical Industries.

Another aspect of Egregious Behavior by Medical Professionals is this incident I heard of and then had Google check it out for me:

A physician in Montgomery County, Maryland, has been arrested and charged with sexually assaulting two women at an urgent care clinic, police say. Ishtiaq Ahmed Malek, 58, groped, inappropriately touched, and sexually assaulted the victims during routine examinations at the Advanced Walk-in Urgent Care on Lockwood Drive in Silver Spring, Montgomery County police said. Detectives arrested Malek on Thursday outside of the urgent care. He was charged with second-degree rape, second-degree assault and fourth-degree sex offense. Police believe there might be more victims, and they’re urging any other victims to call (240) 773-5400.

That doctor was not the first or last one to commit such a crime. I remember that I realized this when Evelyn Yang courageously came out publicly and told her story of how she was sexually assaulted by her Ob/Gyn. The Corrupt Media had to Reluctantly report these incidents.

Ms. Yang said she was assaulted by Robert Hadden, a gynecologist in Manhattan who has since been accused of sexual abuse by multiple patients. She said Mr. Hadden assaulted her in his exam room when she was seven months pregnant.

“I was dressed and ready to go,” she told CNN. “Then, at the last minute, he kind of made up an excuse. He said something about, ‘I think you might need a C-section,’ and he proceeded to grab me over to him and undress me and examine me internally, ungloved.”

I excerpted this from the New York Times. To read the full article go to:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/16/us/andrew-evelyn-yang-dr-robert-hadden.html

I would strongly suggest a Female Ob/Gyn (I haven’t yet heard of any wrongdoings there!), or request a Chaperone. And, don’t tell me: I trust my doctor! Evelyn Wang trusted her doctor, so did Malek’s patients! Such nasty characters are the exception not the rule? True. Do you want to take your chances?

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) reported that 2.4 million people were scammed, and that the amount of 8.8 billion was lost to fraud. Of course these figures do not include the dentist I mention, the other opioid pushing doctors, and doctors pushing pills and procedures on you because they are being paid by the pharmaceutical and medical industries! Fraudsters and Scammers are in your computer, on your phones, on your social media platforms and all over the damn World and Cyberworld. Beware of Fraud!