Patient Education

Patient Education tools are a very important way for you to participate in your own health care. Keeping yourself well informed about health issues you may have or are trying to prevent can play an integral role in how your provider can help you attain and maintain good health. The most common way we offer patient education information is by giving you a handout about a specific condition while you are in the office. For those of you who like to get this information online, we have added a link to the American Academy of Family Physician’s patient education web site, which offers a wealth of information about many topics. We encourage you to explore this site to find answers to many questions you may have about your health.

Prior Authorization

Insurance companies and other health benefit managers sometimes restrict the use of certain kinds of medications and certain medical tests as they attempt to save money. As a consequence, we are increasingly required to obtain a prior authorization from them in order to care for you properly. This means that your insurance company may not cover certain medications or special tests, even though they are needed for your medical problem and your health. If this occurs, our “Prior Auth.” Department will communicate with your health benefit company as quickly as we can, so that your important medical problem can be treated in the most appropriate and timely fashion possible. This process usually requires us to make phone calls and to send paperwork and medical records to your insurance company in order to prove to a medical reviewer that the treatment or test is needed for you. As your personal health partners, we make these instances our priority.

If your care involves a prior authorization, please be patient with us as we try our best to solve this problem as quickly as we can. Each of us understands that illnesses are stressful and sometimes frightening. We also realize that it is sometimes difficult to deal with large companies.

Fortunately, our Prior Auth staff are specialists in problem-solving and will work hard for you. Please be patient while we work to make your arrangements. We will call you as soon as we have a solution. And, if your important medical problem requires a medication or a test which is waiting for prior authorization, please let your insurance company know how you feel about this industry-imposed regulation. We will be calling them at least daily; you can help us by doing the same. As your personal partner in health, your help and action can help a great deal. Feel free to contact us to check on the progress of your authorization.