This information sheet is provided to help you
in the future with our office procedures. Please remember that we are
required by your insurance company to have a current signature on file. This
must not be older than one year. We also need to verify your current address
and insurance information at each visit to avoid any billing problems.
Prescriptions
When calling for a refill on an existing prescription, please call your
pharmacy at least 24 to 48 hours in advance. This will give us time to pull
your chart for review, approval and a return call to the pharmacy.
Prescription refills are taken care of on weekdays from 8 a.m. - 12 noon,
and 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Referrals
Most insurances that require a referral to see a specialty physician require
that you have seen your primary care physician first. Your primary care
physician's office will request a referral from your insurance company. It
is your responsibility to make sure your referral is in our office prior to
being seen.
Insurance Information
Sierra Nevada Cardiology Associates is contracted with
most insurance carriers. As a courtesy, our office routinely files
primary insurance claim forms for our patients. Should you provide
supplemental insurance information to our office, we will also file those
claims on your behalf. Insurance may pay all, some, or none of your
bill, but remember you are responsible for payment of any balances not
covered by your insurance. Please make sure authorization is obtained
from your primary care physician if it is required by your insurance
company.
Payment Policies
A deposit is required from
our uninsured patients. For our insured patients we ask that portions
of your visit not covered by insurance and any co-payments due to be paid at
the time of your visit. We understand that medical
costs can sometimes be a burden, and we're willing to work with you to set
up a payment plan. The telephone number for our business office is
(775) 823-3060. For your convenience, in our Reno and Carson City
offices we accept cash, checks, Visa and MasterCard.
*Please notify us should your address, telephone number or insurance
carrier change at any time.
Lab Results
Please allow a minimum of three working days for the results of your lab
tests to come back to us from the lab. If you have an appointment your
results will be discussed at the time of your visit. If you do not have a
scheduled appointment, your lab results will be reviewed by the clinical
staff, and a letter will be sent to you.
Call Backs
The nurses make their call backs in the order in which they are received.
Please allow enough time for them to call you back. Emergencies will be
handled immediately.
Emergencies
If you have an emergency during office hours, call our
Reno office (775) 688-8000 or our Carson City office (775) 687-8570 and one
of our nurses will assist you, or go directly to the emergency room.
After hours, please go directly to the emergency room of your nearest
hospital or call 911.
*Please notify emergency room personnel that you are a SNCA patient,
and have them notify the SNCA physician on call.
Hospital Affiliations
Our physicians are on staff at Renown Regional Medical
Center, Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center, Northern Nevada Medical
Center, Carson-Tahoe Hospital in Carson City, and Barton Memorial Hospital
in South Lake Tahoe. In addition, our physicians work closely with all
rural community hospitals providing consulting and diagnostic services.
Billing Inquiries
For billing inquiries, please call our billing department at (775) 688-8000
between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you
should encounter "voice mail" please leave a message and a billing person
will call you back.
Medical Records Release
If you should need your medical records for any reason in the future, you
will need to sign a "Release of Information" with our office. The release
must include a complete address of where your records need to be sent.
Please allow one week to process the copying of your chart. There may be a
charge for this service.
There are times in which our cardiologist may need to review your medical
records from other physicians or medical facilities in order to provide you
with the best diagnosis and treatment options. In this event, you will
need to sign a "Release of Information" specifically for this purpose.
To ensure that this information is received by Sierra Nevada Cardiology
Associates in an accurate and timely manner, we ask that you complete the
form in its entirety.
Patient Forms
The above notice describes how medical
information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access
to this information.
HIPPA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) was
passed to achieve two major objectives:
1. To improve claims processing which would facilitate
efficiencies and cost savings within the health care industry via
the increasing use of
technology.
2. To ensure confidentiality and appropriate use and
disclosure of personal health information.
Mission Statement
Sierra Nevada Cardiology Associates is committed to improving our
electronic claims processing and is working closely with our software
vendors to ensure compliance with this objective. We are also
committed to making every effort to ensure the privacy and confidentiality
of patient health information.
The above "Patient Information" form provides
Sierra Nevada Cardiology Associates with your most current information, i.e.
address, phone number, insurance carrier, etc.
Your
initial consultation:
For your first visit, plan to spend at least an hour with
us. This will enable your doctor to get a complete medical history
from you and perform an examination. Diagnostic testing may also be
performed, and the results will be discussed with you. Appropriate
follow-up care will also be planned at your initial consultation.
Be sure to bring the following:
1. Your current medical insurance cards.
2. All current medications in their bottles, including
over-the-counter medications.
3. Medical records from your referring physician pertaining to your
current condition.
4. Completed copy of the "Patient Information" form (also available at
each office)
5. Insurance co-payment (insured patients) or deposit (uninsured
patients)
Should any of this information change between visits, let us know so we can
update your records.
Sierra Nevada Cardiology Associates must have a
signed and completed copy of the above authorization form in order to
discuss any patient information with a spouse, family member, friend, etc.
