Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Monday, September 29, 2014
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Pain Management Insurance FAQ - Post by Teresa McPherson, CEO
In today’s world and the ever changing coverage and rules of health insurance it is sometimes difficult to know if you are choosing the right medical coverage for yourself. Here are the most common questions patients ask me:
How
can I find out if a doctor is in network with my Insurance plan?
This information can be found online these day’s via
your insurance plan website. If unsure
about how to access and find this information as some sites may not seem user
friendly you can also call your insurance carrier and inquire. There is a member phone number on the back of
your insurance card. Once you confirm
that your doctor or doctor you are being referred to is in network this means
services provided to you will be processed at a contracted fee schedule. Co-pays, Co-insurance and Deductibles will
still apply to the patients responsibly per the plan you have chosen.
Is
my doctor’s office responsible for checking my coverage and benefits?
No. As with most insurance the patient’s benefits
can be quite vast with all the different plans available to choose from. Also some insurance plans require prior
authorizations for certain or all services rendered depending on your chosen plan
such as HMO’s and Managed Care and Replacement plans for Medicare. However, here at
Central Florida Pain Management we verify your coverage and any prior
authorization as a courtesy to our patients to help ensure your services will
be reimbursed by your plan and also to help eliminate any unexpected out of
pocket cost to you. Remember coverage can change
between the time it is verified and services are rendered. The benefits are the patient’s responsibility
to know and understand.
Your insurance carrier must notify you of any
changes to your policy or coverage cancellation. However, keep in mind it is ultimately the
patients responsibility to keep current on any and all changes.
How
will I know if I need Prior Authorization?
Some
insurance plans require prior authorization for certain or all services in
order for the services to be paid. We here at Central
Florida Pain Management will call to obtain authorization with the many plans
we are participating with. However, it is your responsibility as the patient
to know if your insurance requires prior authorizations.
Remember all
insurance plans should provide you with a policy and coverage handbook. You can also contact your health plan via
phone by calling the member phone number on the back of your insurance card and
customer care will be able to answer any questions you have regarding your policy.
Blog by: Teresa McPherson, CEO
Monday, August 11, 2014
Bella's second PlayDate!
Bella's second play date. This time with Jazmine. Ashley, our office mangers, Catahula Leopard Dog.
Bella is loving her vacation!
Bella is loving her vacation!
Bella Pain Management Therapy Dog on a PlayDate!
Bella's Playdate video!
Bella and Emmy playing together during a sleepover.
Emmy is Teresa, our CEO's, yellow Lab.
Bella and Emmy playing together during a sleepover.
Emmy is Teresa, our CEO's, yellow Lab.
Spinal Cord Stimulator Central FL Pain Management - Blog by Cesar A. Euribe, M.D.
WILL a Spinal Cord Stimulator HELP MY
PAIN??
Amongst the different modalities that help our
patients in pain, there is one that stands ahead of the rest. IT CAN BE TRIED
BEFORE IT IS ACUALLY IMPLANTED.
A trial of spinal cord stimulation is always
done on patients that we consider good candidates for neuromodulation. The trial helps us determine the benefits our
patient can get with SCS therapy.
The indications to consider the use of SCS for pain control
have increased over the last 25 years. It is available to patients with CRPS, post Herpetic Neuralgia, failed back surgery
syndrome, phantom pain, lumbago, radicular pain (sciatica), claudication secondary to poor perfusion.
Also the technology has exponentially gotten
better in the last 10-15 years. Making amazing
progress in the quality, size, number of electrodes in a lead, paddle leads for
implants, computer programs and algorithms, battery capacity and many other
improvements. A comparison can be made to the improvements that cell phones
have been through in the same period of time.
Go online, learn more and remember YOU WILL ONLY COMMIT TO
TRYING IT FIRST AND SEE IF IT WORKS.
WE CAN HELP YOU
FIRST DO NO HARM
Blog by: Cesar A. Euribe, M.D.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Friday, August 1, 2014
Plan of Care
Why a “plan of care”
FIRST DO NO HARM
After an appropriate evaluation, diagnostic studies and
assessment, providers present their patients with a plan of care. Plans of care
should be based on the patient’s “needs” not “wants”. The current scientific
knowledge, training and experience of the provider will govern the best plan
for that particular patient. Some plans are very clear cut and based
exclusively on science and findings such as surgically removing the appendix on
a patient with appendicitis. Others are more complex and hard to be universally
accepted and subject to many opinions by the patient, the provider, the family
and even sometimes the insurance companies.
Unfortunately pain management plans of care are more like the
latter. Subject to controversy and debate by many.
Those who are trained and boarded as subspecialists in pain
management, try very hard to deliver a plan of care that is within the current
science and acceptable pain practice. Experience and training play a very
important role in the development of a scientific good treatment plan. However
we constantly face challenges because of the different “opinions” that some
patients and some providers have. They go from one extreme to another, nothing
more controversial than pain drugs.
A good, scientific plan of care must
a)
establish medical necessity.
b)
prescribe appropriate medications for the
medical condition.
c)
obtain diagnostic tests that are needed
d)
prescribe any procedure or intervention needed
e)
refer in consultation for other services that
might benefit the patient.
f)
provide follow up care and future support.
Most of all we must follow the accepted reasoning of FIRST
DO NO HARM when we develop a scientific plan of care.
Cesar A. Euribe, M.D.
Cesar A. Euribe, M.D.
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