Patient needs to bring to office the insurance cards and a government issued identification such as the driver’s license. In addition, the patient should arrive to the office 10-15 minutes earlier before the time scheduled to talk to the doctor and complete some paper work. Many insurance carriers also require the patient to make a copay for the visit. Thus, the patient may need to take the wallet.
Although governments have officially ended the mandate for facial masking, many healthcare organizations continue to require staff and visitors to wear masks inside their buildings because the risk of COVID-19 is still very much alive. We also have this requirement in our office.
During the check-in process, the patient will be asked to read and sign two documents, one related to privacy protection while the other about patient’s financial responsibilities and giving us permission to work with the insurance. Patient may also need to fill out a health survey and provide us additional information, such as emergency contacts, the insurance subscriber’s demographic, employment status, etc. The office will collect copay at this time. For self-pay patients, we will also collect a deposit.
When the doctor finishes with the previous person, the patient will be roomed in. The provider and patient will talk privately about the health issues and solution. After the visit, the patient may work with the staff on follow-up visits, medical procedures, referrals, the remaining payment for self-pay, etc. He or she may also ask for printed or emailed copies of the payment receipts, the documents they signed during the check-in, and the summary for today’s visit.