As a follow-up to my original post yesterday, I have received a number of
responses – almost all surprised at this:
*”Sorry folks!*
*I somehow sent my piece before completing the email; it should have
remained in drafts so here it is completed.*
*All, this may be a trifle tangential but I experienced the following with
my own healthcare: This morning I was examined by an orthopod for a
shoulder issue I’m having. Among other suggestions, he referred me to a PT
facility that specializes in cranio-sacral modalities.*
*The facility called me quickly to set up an appt and to go over my ins
coverage. At the end of the call, I was very surprised to learn that they
charge a registration admin fee of $55.*
*In all of my years in O&P and with my own healthcare , I never came across
this. Imagine if O&P facilities did this; how many patients would ‘walk’*
*(no pun intended)? Facilities already do so much for free. As a courtesy,
we handle patient insurance, authorizations, billing, and collections. In
my experience, many patients are not aware of what their insurance coverage
is. And, I know most of you out there advocate for your patients, putting
unreimbursable time in fighting for them to receive the best designs and
components for their needs.*
*I am retired now but I do miss the patient care and interactions, but the
admin part for free? Maybe it’s time for a new paradigm but not sure what
that would look like.*
*What say you?*
*BTW, I am questioning whether I should keep my appt tomorrow and pay that
$55. I actually called the Orthopod’s office to let them know about this
and the Medical Assistant at least was appalled. She was going to inform
the Doc.*
*Stay vertical”*
Because the PT facility is in the loop with my health system (or were given
my insurance info by the referring orthopod), they already had run my
insurance (MCare/Aetna) and knew that I reached my deductible for the
year. So when they called me to set up the appt, they had most of what
they needed for intake. Needless to say, I cancelled the appt for today
telling them I was put off by their policy and felt they were arrogant to
require that $55 admin fee. I also wasn’t too thrilled for them to be
doing CST on me anyway, which from my scant research is not that solid a
modality.
Eric Schwelke CPO (E)
Bionic Resources LLC
