Michael J Reid, MD

Everyone who works in this office is amazing! I’ve been a patient since 2013 and have seen both Dr. Reid and Janel the PA, and they are the best in their field. The gals (Valerie, sorry, I don’t remember the others’ names) who administer the shots are sweet as well. Miriam and Linh are the absolute best– they really take care of their patients and their billing woes that are caused by the insurance companies. Overall, everyone here really takes care of you!

I came here after having a few breakouts. A nurse practisionor said it looked like food allergies & recommended to see a dermatologist or an allergists. I’m not allergic to anything so I wanted to find a specialist to find what my body was reacting too. I found this place on Unilocal and despite a few negative reviews, I gave them the benefit of the doubt.
I have to say everyone from the front desk to the doctor and physician’s assistant were really nice. Dr. Reid wasn’t there but the nice women who saw me was professional, personable and really sweet. Unfortunately after i got the skin scratch test from a different physician’s assistant, they were unable to detect anything!?#?! Pretty strange. I was relieved to find I’m (still) nOt allergic to anything but was disappointed that an allergist specialist facility couldn’t find results. They said it might be dust mites (as they did for many of the other patients’ reviews) but my body was reacting to something foreign that caused my body to launch an inflammatory response. if it WERE dust mights. wouldn’t my body breakout constantly??? A bit confusing.

Dr. Reid is very caring, patient, and cannot recommend him enough!

Although I requested a call if I had a bill (due to poor mail delivery at my building) it took the office four months to inform me of an outstanding balance. Further, the woman who called was rude and unprofessional. I read that patients had discrepancies with a their billing however, I didn’t quite expect this poor of service. That being said, Dr. Reed is very nice, hence the two stars.

Another doctor sent me to an allergist to investigate a condition I have that is usually caused by food allergies. After I told Dr. Reid what it was and that my insurance would not cover the $ 500 inhaler my other doctor prescribed, he immediately found a sample of the inhaler he had in the office, which will last me about 3 months.
We proceeded to do allergy testing (a truly surreal experience) and as it turns out, I’m allergic to zero foods. This was kind of a bummer seeing as gluten allergies are so trendy right now. So, for now, I just have to use the inhaler and see what happens.
Anyway, I’m very grateful to Dr. Reid for the inhaler. It’s always good to find doctors who care.

I would NEVER recommend this place if you have allergy issues.
The staff are so incompetent and rude. I never met Dr. Reid, but all his other staff are terrible at customer service and have no idea what they are doing when it comes to billing.
Look elsewhere for an allergist.

Dr. Reid cured my allergies! I mean it. I went to him because I was allergic to animals and anything you can breathe and now I have a dog. When people are miserable with allergies, I am not! I have recommended 2 friends to see him and they both loved him.
He is friendly and really listens. He has a ton of experience, which is what I want in an MD. Also, we were thinking about leaving the Bay Area at some point for Colorado so he looked into what allergens were like in Colorado to ensure I was injected against them too.
Thanks to Doctor Reid and his staff I’m allergy free. I couldn’t have asked for more.

This is in response to the owner comments attached to my original review.
It’s pretty obvious that you will only charge an insurance company what they are willing to pay you. That’s a no brainer.
What isn’t obvious– and relevant in this particular case– is that most of the items and services with ludicrous charges are «not covered» by insurance to begin with. The doctor can charge whatever they want for these.
I went in three or four times before I realized what this guy was doing. Each time I was given a choice: a service covered by insurance, or a service that was «new» that was not that I would have to pay the doctor directly for out of pocket. The former was frequently presented as out of date or not entirely effective, while the latter was presented as the greatest thing or far more effective.
Somehow, my insurance now only covered a portion of my testing and I would have to pay the remainder. I’ve been getting the same tests with the same insurance every time that I have moved in the past five years (4x). This is the only time that I had to pay an extra $ 250.
Like many others, I trusted my doctor’s professional opinion and went for the option that was presented as more effective when given a choice. I didn’t even think that this guy could be taking a bigger cut until I spoke with a family friend/​physician in another state.
I can’t put myself in this guy’s head. I’m not going to expose myself to slander or libel and claim he’s out to screw us all over, just like I know that he would never violate HIPAA and post anything that further identified me. I do know, however, that if a doctor were to push for a treatment solution that offered a vastly greater financial incentive for them for only a marginal improvement in efficacy for the patient, then that particular doctor-​patient relationship has decayed into a salesman-​consumer relationship.
I’m gaining nothing by writing this review. I’m not some Unilocal snob that wants to be a contrarian and slam a popular establishment for my own amusement. Heck, I only write reviews on Unilocal if I really like something, or if something really irks me. Go look at my review history. My last review was for a really good burrito place– I mean, come on.
While you are doing that– take a look at reviews for other medical specialists– the fact that this guy has to come on here and defend himself so frequently should tell you something.

So here is why I gave two stars:
When I received my EOB statement from Health Net PPO, he billed me for $ 420 for NOTHING! I already paid $ 120 for those pricks! And he could NOT figure out what was causing my problem, so I still got that allergy after the appointment. I was just so upset to pay such a high fee for nothing. This is just way too much and the American medical system just sucks!
My nose was congested most of the time during that couple of months and some days I just used a whole big box of Kleenex in a day! My allergy was so bad that I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I searched for an allergist thru my medical carrier’s in-​network doctors. But there were SO many results and I didn’t know who was good. So I went to Unilocal to look for reviews before I picked one. I picked Dr. Reid based on the 4 star reviews and gave it a try at his office. After the appointment and received my EOB statement from Health Net PPO, here is what I think:
Pricks: I had to pay for the cost of pricks UP FRONT, they charge $ 10 each prick. I did 12 pricks so that costs me $ 120. I am a first timer at an allergist’s office, so I had no idea what a prick was before. So here it is: A prick is for one test of allergen. One prick for dust mite, one prick for pollen, one prick for dogs, one prick for cats, etc.
Their office staff: friendly and was able to answer my questions.
Dr. Reid is very easy to talk to and very friendly. He asked me a bunch of general questions like family medical history, where I live and the kind of house I am in (for location-​related allergen?), my personal medical history. After the initial questions, he thought it might be the dust mite that caused my allergy. He recommended me to take 20+ pricks and I asked why should I do that? After some questions back and forth, he dropped this 20+ to 12. Come on, it is $ 10 per prick! This figure seems arbitrary, and it seems to me that this doctor is trying to get patients more pricks even tho they may not need them. Then someone else came in to the room and gave me those 12 pricks.
My test result: I am NOT allergic to dust mite. At the end of my appointment, he couldn’t figure out what was causing my problem and he just gave me some nose spray that I could just purchase at Walgreen!
I think ALL medical practices/​office should disclose their fees to patients BEFORE they make appointments. How hard could that be to disclose fees on their web site? If we are the payor, don’t we have the right to know what we are getting ourselves into first?

On a business trip down to the bay area, I ended up with a serious case of hives which I attribute to a toxic combination of captain/​cokes, hot pot city and crispy crepes. After waking up in my hotel room looking like I was getting ready to star in the next big production horror movie, I thought to myself that I better get checked out before the day is over. So when I got into our satellite office in downtown SF, I logged onto the Aetna website to look for an allergy specialist in my network because I’m not paying for a out of network doctor. The closest allergy doctor that came up from the office was Dr. Reid so I got on the phone to see if they could squeeze me in towards the end of the workday. They had an opening at 3:00 PM so I took it.
When I walked into Dr. Reid’s office, it was nothing special, just a plain typical medical office, but clean and tidy. I was promptly greeted by the receptionist. Filled out a couple of forms, let them make a copy of my insurance card/​ID and was told to wait. I was brought back to the room by a very nice medical assistant who took my vitals and asked me a few questions. I was left alone until the PA entered the room. There was a knock and when the door opened, Janel, the PA greetedme. All I could think about after seeing Janel was holy smokes, a Physician Assistant hotter than Reshma Shetty does exists and in real life no doubt. So I showed her my symptoms and told her all the crap that I ate during the previous 24 hour period. She listened, took notes, and offered an opinion when needed. She also laughed as I was jokingly describing my symptoms and boy was her smile beautiful. But the best part was she was extremely knowlegable and informative. After getting a few food allergies it turned out somehow I’ve now developed an allergy to walnuts. Janel then gave me a prescription for Epipen and fill me on more information. The care at Dr. Reid’s office was fast and just plan awesome. I had a great experience for a first time visit and hopefully the only time to an Allergy Office. Filling the script at the nearby Walgreen is whole other story.
In conclusion, if you get a case of the heebee geebee hives like I did or have any other allergic reaction, make an appointmentwith Janel. Let me know if you were right about Janel, not only was she hot but she also had the brains to go with her looks. Unfortunately I noticed that she had a ring on and lives in a different area code.

Really bad experience with visit and billing.
I have had allergy for years, and it recently seems to get worse after moving to the Bay Area. I have had tested on allergy before (dust mites), but was tempted with the idea of getting allergy shots this time. After some research, I decided to go to Dr. Reid based on great Unilocal reviews. His assistant told me that it would only take about an hour.
However, my experience is far from satisfactory. Dr. Reid was nice to talk to, if it’s in a bar, but a lot of our initial 45 minutes conversation was chitchat and essentially boiled down to the conclusion: I might have indoor allergy, probably of dust mite and mole, and should be tested… Fine.
Then when it comes to actually allergy testing, I waited 20 minutes to be informed by the nurse that they forgot to test one thing on me… dust mite. So I have to again be pricked another time and wait another 20 minutes, and then doctor was not there. 30 minutes…40 minutes… and still not there. He could be heard talking about some exciting trip with another patient down the hall way, while I was there lying on the bed, topless in a chilly Friday, for more than an hour.
When he finally made it to my room, it’s already almost 2 hours into my appointment. And the result was exactly what I told him an hour and half ago…
Fast forward two weeks, when I got letter form my insurance company, not only did they try to charge me twice for the office visit (which I already paid while being at the office), but they were also charging me allergy testing of 60 allergens (while I was tested on 20)…
Overall, horrible experience throughout. Maybe I’m the long tail case, but I would recommend to put some time buffer and double check your bill if you want to go here…

Dr. Reid is such a great doctor. He listens carefully, takes copious notes, reviews them prior to your next visit, and treats you like the intelligent person you probably are. He’s got terrific bedside manner, and his staff are kind and communicative, too.
I saw a few reviews here about billing issues, etc., but I haven’t encountered any administrative problems. They’ve been on time with my appointments, no issues with my insurance, etc. etc.
Honestly one of the best doctors I’ve seen in San Francisco in any category.

It is rare in this day and age to get this level of care. From the front desk to the doctor himself, this is a first-​class operation. The staff is professional, courteous, knowledgeable, friendly, and fun. Doctor Reed is, in a word, amazing! He knows everything about allergies and asthma, and he truly cares about his patients’ well-​being. I trust doctor Reed with my life, and I love him with all my heart. He has gotten me through some very trying times.
The fact that I look forward to getting poked in the arm four times a week for allergy shots says it all. I can’t imagine a more perfect doctor and staff.

Best Allergist in the Bay Area.
I’ve had allergies my entire life. Dr. Reid is by far the best Allergist I’ve ever seen… and I’ve seen a lot. His bed side manner is impeccable. His medical training and expertise are amazing.
As long as I live in the Bay Area I will continue to see Dr. Reid. If and when my 6 month old daughter starts to show signs of allergies, we will take her to Dr. Reid as well.
If you are looking for the best Allergist around, then Dr. Reid should be your doctor.

Major billing issues!!! It’s a shame, because the services rendered with Amber Weiss were excellent. But with terrible bill management and policies; I would never ever recommend this practice to anyone.
I’ve been spending time dealing with their billing department for over 3 years. READ THE FINE PRINT should you decide to get allergy shot treatment. I never even began receiving my allergy shot treatment and the office has continued to bill me for over three years (for shots I never got!).
A year ago, I sent a letter and spoke with billing department to sort out the situation and to confirm that indeed I was NOT getting the shots. I paid up with them (because I am an honest patient and didn’t want any open bills). The confirmed they would no longer send me bills.
Here I am again, receiving bills for shots I never received. AND; the last billing statements I got? 2 versions of the same bill. I just spoke with the receptionist and she stated, «Oh, disregard the second one. We sent out 2 this month.» What? Also be cautious, bills are generated up to 6 months after «services» rendered (which in my case I never got).
Ugh; I have enough to deal with than incompetent billing systems and shady policies.
Looks like the I am not the only one with this complaint. I see another Unilocaler just went through the same exact situation and had to go to BBB (which is my next step as well).
I’ve filed a BBB case and opened a claim inquiry with my Insurance company as well.
UPDATE: ⁶⁄₂₀₁₁
Despite Dr. Reid’s «updated» billing department (per his personal message), I continue to receive bills for allergy services I never received! There is a nice new billing person (Miriam); and for the 5^th time, I have explained my situation, I hope she is able to help me. I never want to get another piece of mail or bill from this office ever again!

Amazing! This was my first visit to a allergist.
I had been to my PCP and a dermatologist with no answers to my allergic reactions.
My first appt they were able to conduct the proper allergy tests and determine what my issues were.
The care the office took and Dr. Reid was amazing! These days it hard to find a Doc caring and knowledgeable. His efficient and I left with the answers I needed.
Thanks again for all you care!
I would refer my friends and family to you!

My original complaint still stands: Dr. Reid’s office failed to notify me for 5 months post-​treatment that they had stopped billing my insurance, then attempted to bill me retroactively after my treatment.
An important clarification: It is not correct that the BBB found Dr. Reid’s office to not be at fault. I TERMINATED the BBB inquiry myself. In a phone conversation with Dr. Reid’s billing department we agreed that if they stopped billing me (erroneously) I would drop the BBB complaint, and so I did, that very day in September 2009, and then continued to receive bills from them for months and months into 2010. Feel free to call the BBB and check it out yourself: BBB Complaint Case#57 150 773 (Ref#24−265 498 – 57 150 773−6−1100)
Over the months they never responded to any of my faxes regarding the erroneous billing. I have had the same cell phone number (my only number) for 9 years and the same mailing address for 4 years so their claim that they couldn’t get a hold of me and that they notified me that they stopped billing my insurance is impossible. I get all of my voice mail, email, snail mail and call back ‘missed calls’. And, I was in their office and they didn’t even notify me «in-​person» of this change in billing policy.
Last week I received a phone call from Dr. Reid’s billing department after I had written the Unilocal review. I was not rude with them, but simply tried to get a quick resolution to my complaint and confirmation that they would stop sending me erroneous bills. Their tone was very unprofessional with me. I terminated the phone call when they confirmed that they would stop sending me bills. I’m glad to have all of this resolved because it’s been a complete waste of everyone’s time!

Thank you Unilocalers!!!
Thanks to the great reviews on Unilocal I went to see Dr. Reid after my generalist told me that there wasn’t much that could be done for the skin irritation I had.
Feeling frustrated and a bit discouraged by all the dermatolist listings being for cosmetic procedures. I didn’t know where exactly to turn, cause I certainly don’t need/​want bigger boobs or lips. I just wanted the skin irritation gone and that is exactly what I got.
Dr. Reid made me feel very comfortable and gave me a solution for the problem and also answered questions for a couple other things I was curious about. I found this to be really reassuring since when I go into my general doctor for a cold and I ask about anything else I always get told to come back and we’ll talk about it in another appt.
So again thank you fellow Unilocalers and thanks Dr. Reid and staff for probably one of the best doctor appt I’ve ever had.

This is the first Unilocal review I’ve ever written. I dislike this place this much, to create an account and warn people about this place.
The people are nice. Their billing department is HORRIBLE. When I first started going there, they over billed me by $ 400! I caught their mistake and they paid me back. I stopped going there 5 months ago and am STILL getting incorrect bills. I’ve been trying to correct the bill so I can pay it off and be done with them, but they are very unhelpful.
Like I said, the people are very nice, but my incorrect bills overshadow this. Try to avoid it if you can.

Five Stars is not enough for Dr. Reid & his staff.
I have been living with allergies for several years now and it seems to get worse each year. I was previously seeing another allergist in the FiDi but wasn’t too happy with him because I felt as if my concerns weren’t answered.
So what did I do? Of course, I went to
to find an allergist and came across Dr. Reid’s office. After a couple of weeks of bad allergies, I was ready for anything that would help me alleviate my allergies.
Dr. Reid’s office is conveniently located in the Financial District, close to my office which is great! After checking in @ the front desk, I knew immediately the folks in this office would take great care of me! They were warm, inviting and informative. Dr. Reid took his time with me and asked questions. He was extremely patient and made me feel at ease! I was nervous about getting allergy shots and he answered any concerns I had.
They performed an allergy test which was quick and painless. Linh (I hope I spelled it right), one of his staff members was awesome, took my vitals and helped me with the breathing test. She also made me feel at ease and answered any questions I had.
I will sign up for allergy tests with his office and this time I will definitely follow through with the shots. I’m ready to put allergies behind me and I am confident that Dr. Reid will help me in doing this! Thank you Dr. Reid and Staff ~ You are awesome!
I left his office happy and content! thanks to Unilocal for this awesome find once again.