Free Republic
Browse · Search
Bloggers & Personal
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Medical Urgent care visit, can someone explain what happened today?
self

Posted on 02/14/2013 4:42:57 PM PST by ropin71

Central NJ- My significant other bashed her hand this morning, it swelled bad and lots of pain. Went to work and it got worse, so went to the urgent care facility for an x-ray. She works for J&J and has very good insurance. When she arrived, she asked if they were able to x-ray on site, and was told yes. After filling out many pages of forms and handing over a $20 co-pay, she was taken to a room where a 'nurse' incorrectly attempted to take her blood pressure several times, tried taking her pulse with her thumb instead of first two fingers, and then was told the Dr. would be in shortly. Her chart was in the room for the Dr. to review.

Older Dr. comes in and attempts to shake the hand that is injured. When he was told this was the hand she injured, he just stood looking at her awkwardly. Dr. never looked at the chart, and when she held out her swollen hand to show him, he began squeezing it, enough to make her cry, and said, I don't think its broken. When she said she would like an x-ray, and that she has been on Coumadin for some time, as she noted in her chart, he asked her if she would like some Extra strength Motrin for the pain. Of course she can't take Motrin due to blood issues, and reminded him, and he seemed confused, asking questions, instead of even looking at the chart

Next, he hands her an ace bandage, and says, here, in case you need it, and begins writing a prescription for an x-ray. When my gf asks him why he is writing a script for something can be done there, he replied, "you have private insurance, we can only x-ray here for people who don't have private insurance, or the indigent". Says she will have to go down the road to the imaging center for the x-ray, and he will have to call her with the results as soon as a radiologist could read it.

She arrives at the imaging center, and is asked by the gum chewing, 3 inch nailed receptionist (in a room full of non English speaking patients waiting)if she is in network or out of network. When she replies that she has a prescription, what difference does it make? she is told if you have private insurance, it will be $100 cash or check only for the x-ray. Of course she doesn't carry $100 cash with her, and pays most bills electronically, and the receptionist was kind enough to point her in the direction of the nearest bank.

She left, quite shocked, and never did get the x-ray. I'm a little disturbed by this myself. Can somebody tell me (other than the obvious) what the heck happened?


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: healthcare; insurance; medical; obamacare; urgentcare
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-73 next last
To: ropin71

you just experienced the future of’govt healthcare, today.

better off learning about taking care of stuff yourself and stocking upon necessary items now.


41 posted on 02/14/2013 5:44:04 PM PST by Secret Agent Man (I can neither confirm or deny that; even if I could, I couldn't - it's classified.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ropin71
Sounds like a crock o' sh*t to me.
42 posted on 02/14/2013 5:45:41 PM PST by hinckley buzzard
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ropin71; Black Agnes

Having good insurance, she should have called her primary care doc (either family practitioner, internist or OB-Gyn) and asked them for a referral to an orthopedic surgeon, OR, where to go for an x-ray.

Not all urgent care centers are the horror stories that this one is, but keeping it within your own MDs would have made it easier. Sorry she had to go trough this crap, and I hope she is better.


43 posted on 02/14/2013 5:54:54 PM PST by Pharmboy (Democrats lie because they must.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ropin71
I can't explain it for you. Are you sure no one ever asked her about guns in her house?
44 posted on 02/14/2013 5:59:17 PM PST by Tau Food (Never give a sword to a man who can't dance.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Excellence
Go to an emergency room. With a script they can’t turn her away.M/i>

There is a $200 copay at the ER though.

45 posted on 02/14/2013 6:00:37 PM PST by ladyjane (For the first time in my life I am not proud of my country.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: hinckley buzzard

You mean you don’t buy the doc reached out to shake an unoffered hand, which was likely held close to her body due to the pain and all? Gosh, so cynical.


46 posted on 02/14/2013 6:01:55 PM PST by Dysart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Welcome to Obamacare.They want to put the medical insurance out of business..to pay for all the services insurance will have to go up..When it goes up so far HHS will step in and tell them they have to keep their prices down...or else the Gov. will provide the ins..Then you will have rationing from drugs, to heart stents to prosthetics to surgical procdures...and if you are too old, you will not qualify for procedures; you will be given a pill, and taken care of to die..Either this law is changed or the best medical system in the world is destroyed...


47 posted on 02/14/2013 6:07:12 PM PST by rxtn41
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: All

I think the main question is, why was she told they could x-ray there, and then changed their tune when they found she had private insurance? What did those who did not have private insurance pay if anything?


48 posted on 02/14/2013 6:08:23 PM PST by ropin71 (God Bless our Troops!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 46 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Are you in a large enough urban area to find another imaging center?


49 posted on 02/14/2013 6:13:18 PM PST by ican'tbelieveit (School is prison for children who have commited the crime of being born. (attr: St_Thomas_Aquinas))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Moonman62

I would never use an emergency room, much less an emergency room at a trauma center. Used to work at one, the wait and quality of care is not that good. Better, if you have a primary care that can’t get you in, see if they have a recommendation/overflow support. My primary care will fit me in if I call.


50 posted on 02/14/2013 6:16:54 PM PST by ican'tbelieveit (School is prison for children who have commited the crime of being born. (attr: St_Thomas_Aquinas))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Yes, medical offices have been looking more like brothels, lately. It’s part of our movement toward Asian-like culture.


51 posted on 02/14/2013 6:19:11 PM PST by familyop (We Baby Boomers are croaking in an avalanche of rotten politics smelled around the planet.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: driftdiver

Scripps urgent care Torrey pines la jolla ca. Outstanding


52 posted on 02/14/2013 6:24:14 PM PST by morphing libertarian
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Have you taken any classes to learn the language of Pakistan or India? You will find it most helpful in the future.


53 posted on 02/14/2013 6:37:54 PM PST by RetiredTexasVet (The Progressive mind...an arid ethical and moral wasteland!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ican'tbelieveit

The only thing I can conclude is that quality varies between facilities and regions. One can use trial and error or ask around.


54 posted on 02/14/2013 6:40:04 PM PST by Moonman62 (The US has become a government with a country, rather than a country with a government.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 50 | View Replies]

To: ropin71
Not to seem like I am minimizing your bad experience....but...

This sounds like a scene out of "Idiocracy".


55 posted on 02/14/2013 6:42:39 PM PST by Bloody Sam Roberts (Here once the embattled farmers stood... And fired the shot heard round the world.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Per my daughter, an RN, she said the radiology department may be considered to be a separate facility, which does all of its own billing, not directly a part of the urgent care center. This could be the reason for the separate co-pay requirement.


56 posted on 02/14/2013 7:15:28 PM PST by NEMDF
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RetiredTexasVet

Have you taken any classes to learn the language of Pakistan or India? You will find it most helpful in the future.

...very depressing, isn’t it? I mean, almost certainly many Indians and Pakistanis are fine health care providers, but they can’t be that much better than home grown...

...same deal in the Catholic Church, by the way...soon, the only priests available will be from Africa or the Philipines
...makes for some murderous sermons, with every third word or so somewhat intelligible...


57 posted on 02/14/2013 7:25:00 PM PST by IrishBrigade
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 53 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

The facility may not have a contract or be a provider with “private” insurance companies which means their claims would be denied, and they’d end up billing you the full cost of service (think arm and leg and first born).

If a government insurance...whatever the allowable rate is for medicare or medicaid (or whatever the individual state programs are for low-income families with children).

No insurance...whatever they want to charge as long as it is not less than what Medicare pays.

Regarding the radiology portion...typically the facility has a facility charge and a Radiologist charge, and then, if the Radiology group is not employed directly by the hospital or facility (most are not), then the Radiologist is billing separately for reading the xrays, but do not charge for the actual taking of the xrays. Dr.s most often do not take the films, the tech takes the films and then the Radiologist reads them.


58 posted on 02/14/2013 8:18:34 PM PST by ebersole
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 48 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

Here’s what our experience has been with suspected broken bones.

If it’s severe, go to the ER. If it’s not urgent (i.e. bone breaking through the skin), immobilize the injury, ice it, and see the orthopedist the next day. Or have your GP fax a script to the radiology department or stand alone imagining center, and get an x-ray there to see if it’s broken, and if it is, then proceed to the orthopedist.

When you go to a walk in or even an ER, if it is broken, all they’ll do is immobilize it and tell you to see an orthopedist the next day to set or cast the limb.

That’s the way it is in our neck of the woods, and it’s been that way for many years.


59 posted on 02/14/2013 8:30:58 PM PST by memyselfandi59
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ropin71

I manage orthopedic surgeons.

An urgent care that cannot take and read a plain XR is scary. There are wasted steps (and extra $$) if the person interpreting the film is not the person treating the problem. Any physician who needs a radiologist to interpret a plain XR is not competent to treat the fracture. (Advanced imaging is a different discussion.)

Go to an ER, where there are orthopedists on call, and they are obligated to see you (at least once) if the ED physician consults them. Better yet, if you have an established relationship with a family doc, have them refer you straight to the ortho office. You’ll save money.


60 posted on 02/14/2013 8:52:38 PM PST by Taliesan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-73 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Bloggers & Personal
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson