PROVIDING QUALITY MEDICAL CARE TO OUR PATIENTS IS OUR PRIMARY CONCERN. We are glad to provide care within the guidelines of your insurance company contract. However, it is your responsibility to understand your benefits and to call your insurance company for clarification of questions relating to your coverage. Payment for non-covered charges and balances not paid by your insurance company are ultimately your responsibility.

As a patient, the best action you can take to ensure that your billing is accurate and correct is to make sure that we have your correct contact information. This includes your name, address, telephone number, name of your guarantor (the person responsible for your bill), the name of your insurance company, identification/plan number, group number, claims filing address, and your insurance carrier's telephone number.

Your first step is to determine the extent of your health benefits, and if BDA is "in" or "out" of network. Either way, BDA would be pleased to treat you, but your eligibility for insurance coverage and your financial responsibilities may be different.

Please notify our office immediately if your insurance plan changes in order to prevent delays in processing your claims with the correct health plan, and possible denial of your medical claims.

As a courtesy we will obtain in-office benefits for patients with whom our providers are contracted ("in-network"). We will also obtain pre-certifications or prior authorizations if necessary. HMO patients and some managed care patients are responsible for obtaining the necessary referrals prior to their appointment. Please call your insurance company to determine if a referral is required from your primary care physician (PCP). Appointments may be rescheduled if our office does not receive the required referral by the time of your visit. In addition, unauthorized (referrals not obtained) and non-covered services are the patient's responsibility, and full payment for these services is expected at the time of your visit.

When you arrive for your appointment, you will be asked for your co-pay, deductible, and/or co-insurance at the time services are rendered if you are on a managed care plan. Most health plans require that separate co-pays be collected at each visit, whether a physician or clinical assistant sees you.

In providing thorough and expert care, your Provider may perform one of the following in-office procedures as part of your treatment: injections, scrapings/shavings, destructions (freezing), biopsies, or excisions of lesions or growths. Your insurance company may consider one or more of these procedures as surgery. Such in-office procedures, or surgeries, are often subject to deductibles, in addition to your office visit co-pays. This policy is determined by your insurance company, not BDA.

If a small sample of growth on your skin is removed, your sample may be sent to our dermapathologist, Dr. Howard Gerber, or an independent pathologist, who examines the sample under a microscope and determines the type of growth or disease present. This helps your provider determine the best possible treatment for you. Thus, there may be a pathology charge for preparation and evaluation in addition to the Provider's charge for removal of the tissue. There is usually an additional co-pay charged for dermatopathology services.

If you have any outstanding balances on your account, you may be asked to pay them prior to further treatment.

If BDA is "in-network", we will file your insurance for you within 24 hours following your visit. Patients with health insurance with whom our providers are not contracted ("out-of-network") are expected to pay for the full charges at the time of your appointment. An Attending Physicians' Statement will be provided to you to submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. We do not file insurance claims for non-contracted health plans. This includes non-contracted secondary plans as well.

Your monthly statement will show all outstanding amounts due. If you have a patient balance due on one or more accounts, and insurance pending on other accounts, your statement will reflect both patient and insurance pending amounts.

With your cooperation, you should be able to receive all the benefits offered to you by your insurance plan, allowing us to do what we do best - concentrating on your skin care needs.

Click here for a list of insurance providers.