October 24, 2022 | To: United States Department of Health and Human Services | Office for Civil Rights | Health Information Privacy complaint 

 

To whom it may concern.  

I would like to formalize a complaint about Mindsprings Heath’s (MSH)

reckless abuse of my and my husband’s mental health privacy, as well as inhumane business practices. 

 

Additionally, I’d like to show proof of Medicare billing fraud. This is one of several situations that I will explain in this letter.  

 

My complaints tie together MSH, Colorado Workforce Center both Meeker and Craig. And very likely also tie to Rio Blanco County. By way of unruly small-town gossip.  

I believe the small-town gossip led to my only employment opportunity vanishing into thin air at Rio Blanco County. I am permanently disabled due to trauma. My income is less than poverty. I have a hard time leaving my house often. This was ONE part-time job that I’d be able to consider, and like.  

 

{My resume and experience prove me an exceptional candidate for this job}

About me:  

I’ve been through and continue to suffer the consequences of being a survivor of human trafficking. I may talk in circles and repeat myself. Please be patient, as I’m dealing with this continuing trauma as best I can. 

I’ve never filed a complaint on any entity of the United States Government until I became a victim of human trafficking.  

I’ve received ZERO help related to housing, trauma support and cash to relocate, as directed by the Anti-Human Trafficking Act of 2000.  

More information on that: https://www.justexhale.org/colorado-breaks-federal-act/  

About us:  Both my husband and I have needed crisis help within the last year. He, within the last few months, and myself at Christmas, related to an additional disrespectful and predatory actions which have prevented an employment opportunity. Something that is hard to find. All for a laugh over my pain and anguish.  

I’ve dedicated a lengthy webpage devoted to MSH because this is unreal to me.  

 They (MSH) used the tools they had as resources for helping people to help themselves  to take it from me when I’m following all the rules and at a point of begging. To laugh at me and make no attempt to return multiple calls with detailed messages. That began with {supervisor/Counselor} at MSH and ended with Colorado Workforce leaving me falling apart and hopeless on Christmas.   

MSH’s compliance with basic personal information is shameful.  Particularly for a one-horse town.  

This malicious disregard for my privacy AND use of my private information to “gang up” on me, like brutal teenage “mean” girls. I am not referring to what I am obviously already revealing about my survival story. I mean offering services they couldn’t pull off, when torturing me for the entire month of December with a glimmer of a little Christmas hope, to blow me off with unholy cruelty. And to never explain why or hold any accountability.  ESPECIALLY because they all know my story. I wouldn’t wish this treatment on my worst enemy, of which by now come a-plenty. They were in cahoots, and they disregarded me altogether by never returning my messages and calls. 

 

They know I am crying and dying to get back to my son! They knew I was making every effort to get a job and they sabotaged legitimate help that would likely have led me to part time work that I could handle doing, where I KNOW I would excel. Nobody even read my resume that they had for a month. For a job with Rio Blanco County that mysteriously disappeared without any notice, much less an interview. They took the job post off their website after about a month and I called to ask why. I wanted to know why I didn’t get an interview, much less a call or letter, or email. The woman said the job was now a full-time position and “Would I like to apply for that?”. I almost lost it emotionally, but I kept it to a sob. It was the same woman I emailed and spoke with before at least 4 times in one month. She didn’t mention it then. She didn’t apologize either. She then called me a few minutes later to apologize. Guilty conscience. No, she was watching her own back. Hoping I would just go away. 

 

 

The Colorado representative for Rio Blanco WorkForce Center promised relief of $400 for my cell phone which ended up being turned off and my expired auto insurance since I was actively seeking employment. This person couldn’t handle being told she might be wrong when I urged her to check her guidelines from the start.  This was a Goodwill Grant.  This person insisted my disability income didn't count as income for that program. I used to own a mortgage brokerage; I know underwriting guidelines. I know with any program for any type of financial assistance needs to know the applicant’s income. And, income is income, regardless of the source. I also know how to run a business. I’ve run a call center before and been in upper management for years. I don’t intend to be a know-it-all. I do know a lot of things by finding out the hard way. If I’m wrong, I am the first person to admit it and either correct it or apologize. Particularly when I was in mortgage. You just can’t mess with people’s lives and sense of security like that. And to do it when I was reaching out for legitimate help to help myself absolutely BOGGLES my MIND. 

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How am I supposed to trust my mental health to these people at MSH?  These women simply hate me. They’ve pulled out all the stops on laughing at my pure pain. Much of which they themselves and their likely gossip caused in the first place. I think they set me up to fail. And I think they pull this with others also, with no regard to human decency whatsoever. I’ve been a patient since April or May of 2021. He began his treatment in April of this year.  It took months for his many, many calls asking for an initial appointment! Nobody would call him back. Message after message. 

  

The black and white fact is my phone number somehow ended up as a main contact for my husband.  I asked MSH's local receptionist (at the time) to make this correction to just his number, not mine.  She promised she would. That was when he and I first filled out his new patient intake paperwork.  

 

That day, we arrived more than a half hour early to be sure we’d be able to sit down and go over it together. I normally do this paperwork on his behalf related to addresses & insurance.  Sometimes he needs help remembering a doctor’s name or a procedure date. They hurried him into a room where only he could complete it. He got frustrated and they finally allowed me to help. I had no more than a minute to skim what he had scribbled. I was not allowed to touch this piece of paper or the pen or say anything as he filled it out. No exaggeration there. 

 

I was lucky they allowed me to scan his document to my Dropbox files with my phone.  At that point, I’m thinking that they make up the rules as they go.    

 

On the scanned copy of his paperwork taken from my phone had two conflicting viewpoints as to how to interpret the black and white.  

 

1. My husband indicated my phone number under “other”. I told the receptionist this on our way out the door and asked her to please fix it ASAP. I was unable to touch this document myself to correct it. That’s why I specifically asked.  

1. I asked at the Rangely both in person and over the phone. When I called to have her change his primary number to his number and not mine. That was the only reason for my call.  She again promised to do it and we hung up very politely.  She is sweet and means well but she isn’t good at multitasking. Unfortunately, she is quick to promise without following up. 

 

I received a call for my husband after that promise for the number correction. I called in and spoke with someone at MSH’s Grand Junction call center and asked that they make the phone number correction. That never happened either.

 

To date, I have received TWO voicemails on my cell phone BY HIS THERAPIST.  That has a greeting of my female voice saying “This is Deb, please leave me a message”  

 

That voicemail was from his counselor saying she was now logging in to their Zoom meeting. She was 16 minutes late. I don’t think that’s directly her fault because she did just call the number on her screen. On the other hand, why is a therapist scrambling to make an appointment before the clock says she is too late to keep the appointment? 

 

I’ve also asked for an authorization to release information so I can speak with anyone related to my husband. They have never sent it. Not email, not snail mail and not in the ER when I specifically asked for it when he was there in CRISIS.  Every time I call, I need my husband to get on the phone and verify that they can talk to me. Has anyone seen a 6’4” manly-man in a state that would initiate a crisis call himself? They want him, in that state, to get on the phone and verify his name, birthdate and whatever else to approve my involvement.  EVERY TIME

 

My husband and I have had a rocky past and we are both in therapy to get past that, amongst many other things. On November 30, 2020, I had a protection order against him, and he had one against me. That was in Montezuma County.  That fact alone proves the abhorrent nature of this pure neglect to our privacy rights. The case number is/was 12001787 and Officer Cannon was the primary officer at a D/V scene. 

 

• Note the judge that issued a protection order to me the morning after my husband spent the night in jail on a D/V charge. And had my gun taken away. I was terrified and the police mocked and tormented me to no end.  

• This was the same judge that had me dragged from the courtroom when I was only trying to get enough funds to just get HOME to my son in SMALL CLAIMS. My captor counter-sued me and his lawyer threatened he had begun the process of garnishing my SSDI income. 

 

MSH insisted my husband had an appointment on May 9, 2022. He was never informed of it and told them so. We were in Arizona at the time on a planned trip. MSH’s policy punishes you for missed appointments by not allowing another appointment until you complete an 11:30 Monday Zoom Meeting for delinquents. Then, and ONLY then can anyone make another appointment, crisis or not. It could be two weeks plus to have the appointment once you are allowed to make it.  NOT only did MSH "punish" my husband with their policy, they billed Medicare for the appointment he never knew he had. And Medicare paid it! 

 

When I called about this situation, MSH had to talk to my husband to accept and allow my access to this billing information. I explained my frustration of repeatedly asking for this basic, simple form and never getting it. I asked this person in billing to please snail mail a release for my husband to sign allowing me to talk about him and his account. I also asked her to mail a copy of the bill for that unexplained missed visit that Medicare paid on.  She refused to just email it to me since I didn’t have authorization to receive it. Even though he had just provided his verbal authorization on that very same call.  She said the only thing she could do is mail it to his physical address which obviously is the same as my physical address. For some reason she wouldn’t even email directly it to him.  She was annoyed to have to print something and mail it. Today is 10/24/2022 and I have yet to see anything in the mail.  

 

This organization [as a whole] is a BULLY. They are rank-and-rule driven while people commit suicide. Their call center employees don’t seem to have a huge turnover. Maybe it’s because they get paid to do and say whatever they want. One of the most ruthless and careless is a particular man in the Grand Junction call center. He comes off so awesome until he’s out of possibilities to help people without further hurting them and he gets defensive and mean. 

 

I strongly encourage a review of the actual calls I’ve made.  I know their expensive new phone system will support that review. Their old one probably did too, about one tenth as well. I think it should be required for the appointment line staff (maybe even billing) to FIRST ASK ANYONE calling in IF THEY ARE IN CRISIS before saying anything else. It’s really easy to fumble a phone from shaking so hard you can barely dial when IN CRISIS. It’s EASY to hit the wrong extension accidentally in the chaos of the moment. The women in billing all have an attitude too. The LAST thing ANYONE ON THE PLANET DESERVES. Would any of you want your loved one to call in – in desperation - and end up with the heartless witches in billing? REALLY? I think that should be a nationwide policy for mental health offices. 

 

Yes, I may be a know-it-all and rub people the wrong way. I have lived and learned a lot in my fifty years on this planet. I’m attaching my resume for that reason.  I’m not seeking HELP to be anyone’s friend. I’m looking out for myself and my husband.  

 

Moreover, I know we are not the only ones.  

 

I strongly believe that the faculty at MSH have an internal “crazy code” of some kind.  Every single time I call, the agent has a great professional and caring sincerity in their voices. Until they hear my name and pull my d/o/b.  I do my best to not raise my voice, never swear and I seriously try to always point my frustrations to the organization. Not to the agent personally. I am conscious of their feelings as intake personnel, particularly answering calls like mine with no authority to do anything but throw their hands in the air with an attitude and hang up on people in crisis.  

 

I have more proof of (MSH) their blasphemous practices related to their inability and unwillingness to take and/or address serious complaints about MSH's "PATIENT ADVOCATE". This person ALSO made promises that she didn’t have the authority to make. That had a direct effect on my physical AND mental health. I reported multiple symptoms of liver failure after one of my scripts, prescribed by them had recently been increased (dosage). Nobody called me. There was no promised “Medical Team” and the “Head Nurse" that I left a detailed message with, also never returned my call.  I don’t know if that is HIPAA related, but that treatment alone would cause anyone to feel suicidal from empty promises and frustrations. This is pure vanity of their inability to acknowledging their own mistakes. They are ALL in cahoots. 

 

The most recent disaster of a phone call with MSH was with a woman in their GJ call center. I called in because my husband was in crisis. This representative of MSH had no choice of what to do in the situation. The crisis line had told my husband to hang up and call the main line (GJ call center). The main line tried sending him back over to crisis. When I spoke to this woman in the GJ call center, she was nice - at first. She tried sending me to their "patient advocate's" voicemail.  I told her the problems I’ve had with this advocate.  I refused to leave another message with this person.  For her to be so cruel as to know my situation and completely blow me off when I was wronged was unacceptable. I was promised something she had no authority to promise. Or maybe her promise was overridden by upper management. Their "patient advocate" chose to stick her head in the sand. For her position, that is flat out PATHETIC.  The gal in the call center (in her defense) had NO OPTIONS.  In any situation, the call center employees can only do three basic things; 

 

1. Make/change appointments 

1. Send anyone with a complaint to the "patient advocate's" voicemail 

1. Transfer a call to crisis 

 

Things they used to do nicely without question, before I was flagged as a person they didn’t like:  

• Call another location to get a direct answer 

• Email a provider regarding anything 

 

I was told by the call center [once they likely flagged me as difficult] that they could only transfer me to their unresponsive patient advocate. They claimed they had no internal email access at all and no, they cannot pass a message of any kind along. Who here was born yesterday?  They treat me as though I’m stupid. It is so disrespectful.  

I can understand they are not allowed to try and translate a patient’s concerns, but I also understood that before and I don’t remember ever asking them to do that.  My memory can be imperfect, and I have no proof besides any call log they may have from the old MSH phone system. 

 

I tried to call and put in a complaint about an employee in MSH's GJ call center. She was the first person that ended up hanging up on me when my husband was in crisis. I explained that their patient advocate was NOT an option. She still wanted to dump me in that person's voicemail and I wouldn’t accept that. She said “WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?” The line then disconnected, and nobody made any effort to call back. 

 

I am acknowledging that I am writing to COLORADO. I am STILL trying to get back into my son’s life after FOUR YEARS of being a human trafficking victim.  My predator VERY, VERY LIKELY bribed a Montezuma County judge in 2019. Every branch of Colorado’s government denies any wrongdoing.  

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Colorado has kept me from my son since 2019 because a Montezuma County judge without a reasonable doubt accepted a bribe from a multimillionaire that keeps $20-$50k on-hand in cash as a "norm". A miltimillionaire who'se lawyer handles Montezuma County cases regularly.  I’ve been mocked and disrespected me every minute since then. ALL of these horrible people know how badly I’ve been trying to get back to my son. How do these people get paid to mess with someone reaching out for legitimate help!?