Here's what to do if your Midlands doctors office is closing

When Kaitlin Ohlinger of Columbia learned that her doctor's office, Midtown Family Medicine, was closing, it came as a shock.

"I just got a letter out of the blue," she said.

And like many others, Ohlinger is trying to figure out what to do next.

"I guess I need to start looking for a new doctor," said Ohlinger, a wine representative for Advintage distributing. "But I just haven't had time. It's so crazy."

About 31,000 people in and around Columbia are in the same position after Family Medicine Centers of South Carolina announced last week it will close five offices in the Midlands around May 31 . The closures stem from financial difficulties after the company agreed to a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over accusations of false Medicare and TRICARE billings.

The company said it agreed to pay $2 million to settle the case in order to avoid expensive legal bills. But the company and the Department of Justice said the allegations were unproven and that no liability had been found.

The offices to be closed are Springwood Lake Family Practice in Columbia, Saluda Pointe Family Medicine in West Columbia, Lake Murray Family Medicine in Irmo and Woodhill Family Medicine in Columbia, in addition to Ohlinger's Midtown Family Medicine.

Patients at those clinics received letters last week announcing the closures. With the shortage of primary care physicians in South Carolina and the nation, those patients need to move fast to follow their physician to a new practice or secure a new doctor, said Lynn Bailey, a consulting health care economist in Columbia.

"I can't say it will be easy," she said.

Here are five things you need to do if your doctors office is closing:

▪ Retrieve your records. The S.C. Board of Medical Examiners requires doctors to provide copies of medical records to you even if you have outstanding bills. But you will have to pay a minimal fee to the clinic for copying the documents.

Dr. Peter Stahl, chief executive of Family Medicine Centers, said people can have their records scanned and sent electronically to them or a new doctor, or they can pick up hard copies.

Bailey advises patients to get hard copies. Often electronic records are lost, she said.

▪ Contact your insurance company. The company can provide a list of doctors within your plan, said Patti Embry-Tautenhan, assistant vice president for corporate relations for BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina. She said her company is preparing to send letters to its members with a physicians list.

"And if they still have questions, we encourage them to call us," she said.

Embry-Tautenhan also said insurance companies usually have websites, like BCBS's My Health Toolkit, that lists in-network physicians.

▪ Follow your doctor. Stahl said the vast majority of the dozen or so doctors who practiced at the Family Medicine Centers offices will stay in the area. Three — Drs. John Mattei, William Crigler and Achu Mofor — will remain at the Midtown office, which will be renamed.

Dr. Stephen Serbin, founder of Family Medicine Centers, will remain at Springwood Lake.

Stahl said the company's website will remain active, and it will "post continuous progress on the doctors so (patients) know where their doctors are going and how to get in touch with them."

▪ Check the health care system's websites. Health care systems like Palmetto Health,Lexington Medical Center and Providence Health have find-a-physician portals. Jennifer Wilson, a spokeswoman for Lexington Medical, said the systems have many family practice physicians that work in tandem with specialists through the hospital system.

Bailey, however, warned that hospital and insurance company websites sometimes are not up-to-date.

▪ Fall back on walk-in clinics and nurse practitioners. "If you wake up with a fever and want to know if you have the flu, walk-ins like Doctors Care and MEDcare can take care of you," Bailey said. "And they can refer you to a doctor or specialist if you need one."

Some companies like Doctors Care and MEDcare also provide routine health care services like annual physicals and can bill your insurance company.

Nurse practitioners also provide services in an out-patient or private practice.

This story was originally published April 11, 2018 at 5:36 PM with the headline "Here's what to do if your Midlands doctors office is closing."