Legal Question in Health Care Law in Oregon

Re: Can a dentist charge for anesthesia if they do not perform the procedure?

As a general rule, health care providers are not allowed to bill patients for services which are not performed, or are not performed consistent with the applicable standard of care. To fully answer your question, I would need to know the state where the services were to be performed, more information regarding why the proposed anesthesia was not ultimately administered and the extent to which this dentist should have foreseen this possibility, and as much of the information as possible (oral or written) provided to you/your wife before the scheduled procedure in any "informed consent" meeting or document. A quick review of this information and applicable state law in your state would allow an attorney to answer your question with confidence, although I would anticipate that this dentist would NOT be allowed to charge you for this services, assuming the failure to perform it was not somehow attributable to your wife, and this would likely be the case whether your wife was a private pay, commercial insurance, MediCare or Medicaid patient. Let me know if you'd like us to take a closer look at this issue.