Lewisville Family Physicians
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Welcome to Kristen Murphy, PA-C! The world of health insurance is complicated and confusing. Here are some explanations of a few important topics that apply to how much you pay for medical care. What exactly is a "co-pay"? This is a payment that is due when you are seen. If you have a co-payment, this is set by your insurance company. Your insurance company pays us a set amount for a specific service, We are not allowed, by your insurance company's rules, to change or reduce the co-pay amount. If your co-pay increases, that means your insurance company has decreased how much they pay us by the same amount. What is "co insurance"? In some cases, instead of a co-pay, your insurance company states that you must pay a percentage of the charges. If this is the case, the amount will depend on the particular service since the charge depends on the service. Preventive Health services Some insurance plans do not pay for preventive care, such as physicals , vaccinations, or blood tests (such as cholesterol levels). It is the patient's responsibility to check if the services are covered. If the services you want are not covered, you will be responsible for the charges. Deductibles Some insurance companies, or employers, have included a "deductible" in your insurance coverage. A deductible is a set amount that your insurance company says that you have to pay before they will pay for any services. Usually, this is an annual arrangement, meaning it starts over every year. If you have not paid this amount, you are responsible for the full charge, and this charge is decided by your insurance. *** We have no control over the amount of your deductible, or your charges. This is decided solely by your insurance company and your employer.*** If you have questions regarding your bill, co-pay, or deductible please contact your insurance company, or your employer's Human Resources department. As I have outlined above, they tell us what your charges will be. We do not have any control over your bill. This information does not apply to "self-pay", or those patients who do not have insurance. These charges are due in full on the day of the service. __________________________________________________
Kristen is a certified Physician Assistant who has a wide range of experience in primary care in the area. She has practiced in Pediatrics, Urgent Care and Family Medicine practices and we are very lucky to have added her expertise to our practice. She has interests in all areas of Primary Care, including pediatrics, adolescent medicine, Women's Health and procedures.
She will be seeing patients 3 days a week with us, sharing time with her other job as a Mom.
Some useful information about insurance, our charges, and your bill:
and the co-pay is subtracted from this amount. It is your portion of the total payment for services.
*Your co-pay is not an added payment for us.
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CVS and "Minute Clinics", our position: The American Academy of Pediatrics opposes these "clinics" (see here), and the American Medical Association has requested federal and state investigations of conflicts of interest (here). (Our policy is not directed toward the pharmacists and pharmacy staff at CVS stores, but toward the company in general.)
CVS is adding "Minute Clinics" to several of their local stores. These "clinics" will consist of a physician assistant or a nurse practitioner, who will be seeing patients and no physician will be present. We feel that this type of "clinic" is not in the best interest of patients or medicine in general. We take primary care seriously, and a "clinic" such as this is not appropriate to treat patients. We also feel strongly that is a serious conflict of interest, medical and business, to have a "clinic" where prescriptions can be written to exist inside a pharmacy.
For these reasons, we no longer support CVS and will not send prescriptions to their pharmacy, or use their automated refill system. Our patients are free to continue to use CVS pharmacies if they wish, but will be required to take printed prescriptions for any new prescription or refill.
This policy will also apply to any other chain pharmacy that may choose to do the same in the future, before the practice is abolished.
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If being able to see the doctor of your choice matters to you, contact your government representatives and tell them so.
Here is the contact information for our elected officials in Washington. Tell them what you think about this. I have.
Rep. Virginia Foxx Phone: (202) 225-2071 Main District Office:
web page: http://www.house.gov/foxx
Address: 503 CHOB
Washington, D.C. 20515-3305
Fax: (202) 225-2995
6000 Meadowbrook Mall, Ste. 3
Clemmons, NC 27012
Phone: (336) 778-0173
Fax: (336) 778-2290
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Sen. Kay Hagan
web page: http://hagan.senate.gov
email: Senator_Hagan@hagan.senate.gov
Address: B40A DIRKSEN SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-6342
Fax: (202) 224-6342
Main District Office:
310 New Bern Ave., Ste. 122
Raleigh, NC 27601
Phone: (919) 856-4630
Fax: (919) 856-4053
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Sen. Richard Burr
web page: http://burr.senate.gov
Address: SR-217
Washington, D.C. 20510-3306
Phone: (202) 224-3154
Fax: (202) 228-2981
Main District Office:
2000 W. First St., Ste. 508
Winston-Salem, NC 27104
Phone: (336) 631-5125
Fax: (336) 725-4493
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