Apr 29, 2008 9:57 pm US/Pacific
Call Kurtis: Orthodontist Bankruptcy
For delivery of your dental records, you can e-mail Dr. Ram Grandhi at GrandhiRK@gmail.com
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
Dr. Ram Grandhi recently closed both of his orthodontics offices, one in Sacramento, and one in Granite Bay. Patients found out after paying thousands for dental work.
Now they're worried about finishing treatment and the money they've already paid.
The letter on the door is ominous for Bridget Ugalino and Cynthia Lovato.
"Notice Of Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. Does not appear from schedules that enough assets are available for payment…"
They're both patients of Grandhi Orthodontics in Sacramento.
"I have nowhere to go," said Bridget. "I don't even know how to go about it. I'm just so upset because I wasn't expecting it. I paid in full."
Bridget paid more than $3500. She was supposed to have her braces removed by June and get her retainer. Both may have to wait.
And there's a bit of guilt. She referred her friend Cynthia Lovato to Grandhi just two months before the office closed its doors.
"I've been saving and now most of my savings are here. Gone. Nowhere," Cynthia said.
She paid half of the $5,000 for treatment, and had only just been fitted for her braces.
"I feel cheated a little bit," she said.
According to court documents, Dr. Ram Grandhi filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on April 8. That means Grandhi can't pay his business' debts, and needs to sell what he can to pay the people he owes.
Documents indicate there likely won't be enough to pay everyone. More importantly, he's had to shut down his orthodontics practice. Grandhi notified most of his patients by mail, others found the notice on the office door.
He refers patients to another orthodontist. That's not good enough for Bridget.
"You went bankrupt and you're referring us to another orthodontist," she said. "How do I know that that orthodontist won't go bankrupt."
Whoever they see will probably need their records, but…
"They're locked up in the office."
So they wait and wonder, while their beautiful smiles often fade over frustration.
Dr. Grtandhi told us via e-mail that the bankruptcy is a result of "the economic situation." His attorney tells us patients will probably get some money back -- they'll be notified. She also says patients who want their records mailed to another orthodontist should e-mail Dr. Grandhi.
His address is
grandhirk@gmail.com.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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