Hours of Operation
Our offices are open from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday, and 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM Saturday. The hours for each physician will vary but your choice of appointment time will be given every possible consideration.
Appointments
While we try to keep waiting times to a minimum, emergencies may occasionally disrupt our schedule. If a significant delay in the doctor’s schedule occurs, the receptionist will try to notify you so that you will have the option of rescheduling your appointment or waiting until the doctor is available. If you are unable to keep a scheduled appointment, please notify us at least 24 hours in advance so that we may accommodate other patients.
If you are more than 20 minutes late for a scheduled appointment, it may be necessary to reschedule you, so as not to inconvenience other patients.
Office Visits
At the time of your first office visit, please bring the following with you:
- completed registration forms available to download
- health insurance card and photo ID
- referrals (if needed)
- X-rays, MRI’s, and other test results, and any additional information that might be helpful in diagnosing or treating your problem
Plan to arrive at least 25 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment time in order to complete the necessary forms, if you haven’t completed them in advance of your appointment.
After Hours Emergencies
If you are having a medical emergency, please dial 911 immediately. Our physicians are available on a rotating basis 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The physicians have active full-time privileges to practice at St. Vincent's Medical Center, and courtesy privileges at Bridgeport and Griffin Hospitals. While these hospitals may provide “on-call” physicians, you may request that a OSM Orthopaedic physician be called for any of your orthopaedic emergencies. The emergency room staff will make every effort to contact the OSM physician on call. To contact us for emergencies after hours or on holidays, please call the office telephone number and your call will be transferred to the answering service. The answering service will page the covering physician.
Prescription Refills
Please call the office on weekdays prior to noon to obtain prescription refills. This will allow the physician to consult your records and to make the best decision regarding your care. Refills are not ordinarily handled at night, on the weekends or on holidays.
Financial Policy
We are committed to providing you with the highest level of service from your first office visit all the way through to billing cycle. We recognize that insurance matters are often complicated and change frequently. We are committed to assisting you in this process however; any and all financial liability ultimately rests with the patient. We will gladly file insurance claims as a courtesy to you.
According to your insurance contract, you are obligated to pay any copay due at the time of service. You may pay with cash, check, VISA or MasterCard. We will collect these at the time of your appointment.
If your insurance plan requires a referral, the referral must be provided before seeing the physician. If you do not have the required referral, we reserve the right to cancel or reschedule your appointment.
For planned surgery, we will contact your insurance company to verify your benefits and any co-insurance amounts you will owe. A pre-surgical deposit may be required based upon these verified benefits. For major expenses such as emergency surgery, fracture care or elective surgery, we will work with you to ensure that you are able to obtain all benefits that are due you from your insurance company and to assure that you are able to satisfy your payment obligation to us.
We appreciate prompt payment in full for any outstanding balance. An account balance outstanding more than thirty 30 days is considered delinquent. If unresolved after sixty 60 days your account may be turned over to our accounts resolution department for collection.
We want to help you meet your financial responsibility without undue hardship. Please speak with our billing department at (203) 268-2882 if you need to arrange a payment schedule. This can alleviate anxiety and helps keep your account in good standing.
Our Financial Policy statement contains more detailed information and you will be asked to review and sign this document at registration.
Medicare Filing of Secondary Insurance
We currently accept assignment from Medicare and file with secondary insurance carriers for our patients.
Payment for Durable Medical Equipment (DME)
Frequently health insurance companies may pay only part of the physician’s fee and services. Certain insurance companies will not reimburse you for soft goods or durable medical equipment (DME) items such as braces or splints. The extent of your benefits is determined by your individual policy. Please keep in mind that services have been rendered to you, the patient, not the insurance company, and you are ultimately responsible for any outstanding balance on your account. We allow thirty 30 days for submission and processing of insurance claims. We will be glad to assist you with questions regarding claims with your insurance company.
Workers’ Compensation
Workers’ compensation claims must be authorized by your employer. At the time of your appointment, be prepared to provide:
- Workers' compensation claim number
- Date of injury
- Necessary claim forms
- Name, address and telephone number of employer, immediate supervisor, and workers' compensation insurance carrier
If a workers' compensation carrier denies a claim, you will be responsible for charges incurred as a result of the claim. If you have any questions, please contact our billing office staff at (203) 268-2882.
Requesting Patient Records & Forms
Copies of pertinent medical records are available to the patient or an authorized representative for a nominal fee, after we receive a signed release. Please allow five working days notice. Special documentation requests other than insurance company requirements, such as letters and forms completion, will be honored for a fee. Please speak with our staff for details.