Coverage 2 Care Step 8: Next Steps After Your Appointment

Now that you have found a provider and had your first visit, where do you go from here?

• See your primary care provider for your recommended preventive care and for help managing chronic conditions, as well as when you feel sick. Even if you see a specialist for a specific service or condition, you’ll always come back to your primary care provider.
• Ask your provider or their staff to notify you when your next visit or recommended health screenings should happen. Make an appointment for that visit as soon as you can and write it down someplace where you’ll remember it.
• If you have questions or concerns between visits, call your provider. They can help answer questions you have about your health and well-being and adjust any medications you are taking.

Follow through with your provider’s recommendations. For example, if they told you to go to a specialist, did you call for an appointment?

Many people are worried about getting bad news. Remember that by getting the preventive care that is right for you, your provider is more likely to find an illness or problem early and help you get better faster!

For more information, contact CCN: 773-775-3600

Coverage 2 Care Step 7: Decide if the Provider is Right for You

Your health and well-being are important, so you should have a provider that you feel you can work with, trust, and are comfortable talking to.

Remember: It’s important to find a provider that meets your needs.

If you’re not happy with your first visit, consider giving them another try. You can call the providers office and share your concerns, and possibly set up another appointment with a different provider in that office.

Some important questions to ask after your first visit:

• Did you trust your provider, and did you feel they cared for you as a person?
• Did you feel that you were listened to and that your health needs were addressed?
• Did your provider answer your questions in a way that you could understand?
• Did you feel you were treated fairly by your provider and office staff?
• Did your provider use words you could understand, speak slow enough, pay attention to what you had to say, and speak in a way that made you comfortable?
• Did you feel that your provider showed an interest in your concerns?
• When they examined you and talked to you about your health, was the provider respectful of you opinions, culture and beliefs? If this a place you’d feel comfortable going back?

If you answered “Yes” to all the above questions, you may have found the right provider for you!

If you answered “No” to any of the above questions, ask yourself if you think the provider or staff would make some changes if you spoke up. Sometimes asking for what you need is the best way to get it!

If you’d like the change providers, go back to Step 4 and look again at your list of “in-network” providers to find someone you can trust and work with.

For more information, contact CCN: 773-775-3600

Coverage 2 Care Step 6: Be Prepared for Your First Appointment

It’s important to show up early for your appointment. If this is your first time visiting this doctor or your first time with the new insurance, you will need to bring a few things with you:

• Insurance card
• Photo ID
• Completed forms if requested
• Your copay

When you see your provider, you will want to share the following things:

• Family health history and medical records
• Medications you are currently taking
• Any health questions you may have.

Don’t be shy! Asking questions about your health is important. Here are some questions to ask:

• What can I do to stay healthy?
• What do I do next? Do I need bloodwork or another test?
• If you have a chronic condition, ask about future management.
• If medication is prescribed, ask how to take it and what side effects might occur.
• Do I need to see a specialist or a different provider?
• What do I do if I have questions at home?

For more information, please contact CCN at 773-775-3600

Coverage to Care Step 5: Make an Appointment

Here are some tips to keep in mind when you make your first appointment:

• Keep your insurance card ready. The receptionist may require information from the card.
• Make sure you tell the office all of the relevant information about your appointment including your name and why you are making the appointment. Are you sick? Or is it just a check-up?
• Make sure to indicate if there is a specific provider you wish to see. You may have to wait longer if so.
• Indicate if you have special needs, like accessibility requirements or language knowledge.
• Ask if you need to bring anything, like health records.
• Ask about the office’s cancellation policy. Some places require 24 or 48 hours notice before canceling an appointment.
• Be sure to tell the office when you are available for a visit. Some offices have weekend or evening hours.

Coverage to Care Step 4: Find a Provider

Follow these four steps to find a primary care provider. You may need to find a primary care provider who can recommend you to a specialist if your health requires it.

1. Identify providers in your network

Call your insurance company to find a list of providers in your area. See if providers meet your needs. Do you need them to speak a language other than English? Keep in mind that a provider not in your network will cost more than one in your network.

2. Ask around

Perhaps your family or friends may have recommendations for providers!

3. Pick a provider

Call and see who may have availabilities. Ask if the provider is taking new patients. Determine if there is an appointment time that works for you.See if the provider meets your needs as far as language and accessibility is concerned.

4. Give them a try!

It may take multiple tries to find a provider that is right for you, so don’t be concerned about testing a few out.

For more information, contact Compassionate Care Network: 773-775-3600

Coverage To Care Step 3: Know Where to Go for Care

In a life-threatening emergency, you can always call 911 for emergency services. A trip to the emergency room can be costly, however. In order to safeguard your health, your best course of action is to get routine services and preventative care from a primary care provider.

You can find a primary care provider in a number of different places:

• Private medical groups
• Hospital outpatient clinics
• Community or government-funded clinics
• School clinics
• Veterans’ Affairs clinics.

Your primary care provider will work with you on long-term health issues as well as run regular tests to make sure that you are in excellent shape. To go to a primary care provider, you must call ahead and make an appointment. Make sure you bring your copay. You should visit your provider annually when you are healthy and if you have any health problems.

Having a primary care provider is crucial towards maintaining long-term health. Don’t delay in finding a primary care provider.

Coverage To Care Step Two: Understand Your Health Coverage

If you have recently purchased insurance, before you use it it’s important to know what you can use it for. Your coverage is useful when you’re sick, but it’s also useful before you’re sick. Most insurance covers vaccinations, annual well visits and certain cancer screenings. Make sure you understand the following things about your insurance;

• Network: The doctors, hospitals and clinics that your healthcare provider has selected as “in network”  are available under your insurance. Visiting healthcare practitioners that are “out of network” may cost you more.
• Deductible: Some plans require you pay a certain amount in healthcare costs before the insurance kicks and covers services. This amount is called a deductible.
• Co-pay: When services are covered by your insurance, you may still have to pay a percentage of the cost. The amount you are responsible for is called a co-pay.
• Premium: This is the amount you or your employer pays each month for your insurance.

Compassionate Care Network can help you if you’re confused about your benefits. Find us on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CompassionateCareNetwork

Coverage to Care Step One: Put your Health First

It’s important for everyone to prioritize their health, not just for themselves, but for their family and and other loved ones. The best way to keep yourself healthy is to be proactive about preventative care. While health insurance can be very helpful when you are sick or injured, it’s no substitution for preventing health problems in the first place or identifying minor issues before they become major ones. Here are some steps to maintaining your health:

• Preventative care starts at home. Focus on eating well and exercising to keep yourself in top shape.
• Consider what preventative health services you may need.
• Stay aware of your health and body
• Keep all of your health information in the same place

A project of Compassionate Care Network, 2015. Compassionate Care Network provides ongoing preventative medical screenings and education on important issues like heart health, diabetes and obesity prevention and reduction.

Coverage 2 Care

Ramadan is an opportunity to kick off healthy habits year-round. It’s also a great opportunity to make sure your health insurance is up to speed. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, you may now have access to new health resources that previously were not available to you. In order to take advantage of these new resources, Ramadan is the perfect time to follow the “Coverage to Care” roadmap to ensure you are getting the most possible out of your new insurance.

Step 1: Put your health first

Preventative health is key to maintaining a healthy life. Stay committed to eating well and exercising regularly, as well as visiting the doctor for check-ups.

Step 2: Understand your coverage

Investigate what doctors are covered under your insurance. Calculate how much of a copay you will have to pay when you visit the doctor. For more information about how to understand your insurance plan, press this link to look at the roadmap.

Step 3: Know where to go for care

Find a primary care doctor for non-emergency medical care.

Step 4: Find a provider

Research providers that are covered by your insurance. You can do this by calling your insurance company, or looking at their website. Ask around to see if friends or family have any recommendations.

Step 5: Make an appointment

Make sure you indicate your insurance information when you make the appointment, as well as the type of appointment you want to make. If you’re sick, be sure to tell the office you are sick and if you are just coming for a check-up, be clear about that as well. Ask if you need to bring anything to the appointment, like medical records, as well as the details of the cancellation policy in case you have to cancel your appointment.

Step 6: Be prepared for the visit

Make sure you bring your insurance card, a photo ID, and your copay. You may need to fill out additional forms once you arrive at the office.

Step 7: Decide if the provider is right for you

Decide if the provider made you feel comfortable and informed about your health. It’s very important you are able to trust your provider.

Step 8: Next steps

Ask your provider about any follow up visits or when you should next make an appointment. If you have questions for your doctor between visits, feel free to give them a call.

Now is the time to make sure you understand your health insurance policy! For more assistance, call Compassionate Care Network at  773-775-3600