If your child was followed by another pediatrician before coming to our practice, it is important to get your child’s prior medical records in order for us to provide the best possible care. Please complete a Medical Records Request.
If you are leaving our practice and would like us to send a copy of your child’s medical records to your new pediatrician, please complete a Records Transfer Request.
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A Well Care Visit, also known as a Routine Physical, is a Preventative Health Maintenance Visit. This is a routinely scheduled visit recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Depending on a patient’s age, this visit may include an evaluation of growth and development, age-appropriate screening tools, physician directed anticipatory guidance and counseling, a physical exam, routine immunizations, and age-appropriate screening tests if indicated. Insurances typically cover Well Care Visits and do not require a copay at the time of the visit. Because of the amount of information and items addressed during a routine Well Care Visit, there may not always be time at a Well Care Visit to address multiple concerns outside of routine well child care issues. Patients may need to schedule a separate visit to address issues outside of the health maintenance visit.
An Office Visit is a non-routine visit for a specific health problem, question, or concern. This visit is problem oriented and meant to address a specific health question. It involves having the physician take a problem-focused history, doing a problem-focused physical exam, obtaining appropriate diagnostic tests, and formulating a treatment plan as necessary. Insurances may require us to either (1) collect a copay at the time of the visit for these appointments, and/or (2) apply charges for the visit to deductibles/co-insurance per insurance requirements.
The components of a Well Care Visit and an Office Visit are sometimes performed concurrently during a single appointment. According to rules governed by the Center for Medicare that are followed by all government and private insurance plans, when a physician evaluates for and formulates a treatment plan for a specific problem at a preventative care appointment (usually at a parent or patient request, and assuming the physician has time) he/she will charge for both services.
For example, a patient may have an appointment for a routine Well Care Visit, but also had concerns regarding a sinus infection which were addressed at that visit. A physician will bill for both services. Performing both services at the same visit saves time and eliminates the need for a separate appointment at a future date.
