A Missouri chiropractic and health services company has filed suit against a Madison County woman and an Orange County, Calif., woman, alleging the women caused the company to lose patients and money after they allegedly destroyed the company's billing system.

Chapel, McMurtrie and Bartlett Chiropractic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine claims it entered into an agreement with Amy Pashea, the Madison County woman, in December 2006 in which she promised to provide billing services to the company, according to the complaint filed Dec. 8 in Madison County Circuit Court.

As part of the billing services, Pashea promised to provide comprehensive billing services, a more efficient and timely collection of the company's revenue, that all the company's significant billing needs would be solved by the services and that the billing services, including the issuance of patient statements and invoices, would be performed in a professional and timely manner, the suit states.

In addition, Pashea said her services would include automated billing, collections and reimbursement solutions for the company, accurate coding, collection and allocation of insurance and other payments, company access to "Kareo" billing software and related databases to allow better management of billing and accounts receivable, her availability to patients and to resolve patient billing questions in a timely manner, adequate training of the company's staff on the Kareo software, a trouble-free and efficient transfer of the company's data to the Kareo databases, comprehensive billing solutions collecting all of the company's revenue with little effort on the company's part and a "go live" date of Jan. 5 , 2007, alleges Chapel, McMurtrie and Bartlett Chiropractic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.

In return for her services and under the terms of the agreement, Pashea was to be paid 7 percent of all the amounts she collected, according to the complaint.

However, Pashea never told Chapel, McMurtrie and Bartlett Chiropractic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine her business had dissolved on May 31, 2005, according to the complaint.

Pashea and Shadi Hojati, the Orange County woman, did business with Chaple, McMurtrie and Bartlett Chiropractic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine even though neither was registered to do business in the state of Missouri, the suit states.

Pashea began working for the company on Jan. 1, 2007, and submitted an invoice at the end of March for about $9,600, claims Chapel, McMurtrie and Bartlett Chiropractic Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.

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