Insurance

Most insurance companies pay for your services by the time it takes to provide the care. They typically allow about 30 minutes for a new patient visit and under 15 minutes for a follow up visit. Integrative medical services require much more time than this and our physicians time is often not reimbursed appropriately under conventional health insurance plans, including Medicaid and Medicare. However, in most cases lab work is covered in full. Some of the laboratories they utilize will bill insurance and wait for payment. Others, who have "pay‐assured" programs may require a guaranteed minimum be paid at the time of sample submission and bill the insurer for the remaining payment. A few others are preferred providers, and will not charge patients who have coverage. Most labs, however, will do courtesy billing to aid you in obtaining reimbursement but will require up‐front payment.

We do our best to prepare you for any uncovered costs of your care plan, however, we can not be responsible to know what your health insurance policies cover.

Payment

Consultations

Full payment is due at the time of service. We accept cash, check, cryptocurrency, and credit card. We do not bill insurance for services rendered. We also do not participate with Medicare or Medicaid and we will not bill any third party payers for any services performed.

Laboratory Diagnostic Services

The cost for diagnostic tests vary depending on the fee schedule of the specific laboratories utilized and the tests ordered. We do not profit from tests that are not done in our facilities and order solely based on your care plan. In most cases, payment to these labs must be made at the time samples are submitted. In most cases, specialty lab kits that are not performed by conventional laboratories (e.g. Quest, Labcorp) can be provided to you during your office visit at no additional cost. Most stool, urine, and saliva tests can be done at home and you will be provided with detailed instructions at your visit. Lab results will be reviewed with you at your follow‐up visit. We will not email lab results to you without proper follow‐up, however you are always entitled to obtain your results directly from the laboratory. Unless explicitly stated, we can not cover any of the costs you might incur out-of-pocket from your diagnostic evaluation or treatment plan. 

Supplements, Medical Foods, and Medications

As a general rule, we do not sell these items. However, on occasion, we will carry certain hard-to-find items solely to ease the burden of shopping for them for our patients. The cost for these items will vary according to the specific products and dosage recommended. You will NEVER be required to purchase these items from us and we will always encourage you to choose the best formulation of our prescribed treatments after doing your own research.

Cancellation Policy

There is no charge for appointments cancelled within a minimum of 48 hours notice. We will make every effort to reschedule the appointment. If notice is not given, you will be charged a cancellation fee based on the amount of time reserved for the appointment.

Consent to Release Information

I give my permission to the physicians and staff involved in my care to speak with and/or to exchange pertinent medical information and documents with my care team whenever necessary for the coordination of my care.

INFORMED CONSENT FOR TREATMENT

Integrative Medicine is evidence-based personalized healthcare that employs both the best of mainstream medical practice as well as non-pharmaceutical interventions. Therapies that are recommended in an Integrative Medicine consultation are individualized to the patient. Recommended therapies may include mind-body modalities, such as clinical hypnosis and guided imagery, biologically-based therapies such as vitamins, herbs and other supplements, nutritional recommendations, exercise recommendations, manual medicine-type therapies, such as massage, chiropractic or strain-counterstrain, other systems of medicine-based therapies such as Ayurvedic medicine, acupuncture or homeopathy, and energy medicine modalities, such as Healing Touch or Reiki.

Taking time for an individualized approach ensures that treatment plans are evidence-based, safe and custom-designed to meet the patient’s needs and goals. It is important for you to know that just as in conventional practice, the evidence for integrative options can change rapidly and that recommendations are provided with the best evidence available at the time of your evaluation for your particular condition. Evidence and recommendations can change over time and with the course of your health. Salus WellCare never recommends stopping conventional Western medical care or treatment without consulting with your physicians.

An Integrative Medicine consultation may include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Individualized counseling for lifestyle and nutrition recommendations

• Individualized recommendations for supplements/vitamins/herbs, including checking for drug/supplement/herb interactions

• Use of Mind-Body medical therapies such as learning self-hypnosis, guided imagery, relaxation techniques and HeartMath biofeedback techniques

• Use of chiropractic manual medicine techniques

• A detailed physical examination

• Referral to other therapeutic providers for care not provided by our practitioners (e.g. Acupuncture).

Please read the following in its entirety and sign below:

• I understand that Integrative Medicine consultation by my Salus provider may include recommendations for various treatments as above, that evidence and recommendations may change over time, and that recommendations may also change as my individual medical condition and/or treatments change.

• I understand that I have the right to choose which recommendations to incorporate into my treatment plan and that I should always communicate any new treatments, including vitamins/herbs/supplements to my entire healthcare team.

• I understand that Salus WellCare implies no guarantee of services concerning the results intended from any treatment and/or recommendations provided to me, that I have the right to choose my treatment plan and that I may refuse any or all treatment suggestions at any time.

• I acknowledge that I have not been asked to stop/discontinue care provided by my specialty or primary care medical teams without consulting with them first..

• I understand that integrative medicine information, data and drug/herb/supplement interactions databases are constantly updated as new information becomes available and that my Salus practitioner may not be able to anticipate and explain all potential risks and complications due to the ever-changing nature of the field. I agree to allow my Salus practitioner to exercise his/her best clinical judgment in my case based on the information available at the time of my visit.

I understand all the facts given to me in this form. I give my consent to the practitioners at Salus WellCare to provide Integrative Medicine initial consultation and follow up consultative services for me. I acknowledge that no guarantee of services have been made to me concerning the results intended from any treatment and/or recommendations provided to me. 

I attest with my signature below that I have been well-informed of all the information on this form, that I have had the chance to ask questions and that all of my questions have been answered.