Patient Information

Financial and Insurance

Basic Policy

Payment for services rendered is due in full at the time of service. Our office accepts cash, personal checks (there is a $20 returned check fee), and credit cards. We also offer convenient financing.

Surgery fees

All co-payments, deductibles and payments for non-covered surgical procedures are due prior to your surgery. Your insurance carrier may require prior authorization.

For Patients with Insurance

As a service to our patients, we will bill your insurance carrier, provided proper paperwork is provided to us. We will also assist you in billing your secondary insurance carrier, if applicable. Every effort will be made to closely estimate your co-payments and deductibles that are due at the time of service, but the ultimate responsibility for any unpaid balance rests on you. Please understand that insurance is a contract between you and your insurance company. If an insurance carrier has not paid within 60 days of billing, any unpaid professional fees are due and payable in full from you.

Managed Care Participants (HMO. PPO)

Some benefit plans require pre-authorization and specialist referral forms from your primary physician. Please provide the proper insurance plan identification and forms necessary prior to your visit. Obtaining a medical referral is the patient’s responsibility. A referral from a dentist is not adequate for medical coverage. We cannot obtain the referral for you, and the referral cannot be obtained retroactively. If you do not have a referral, we will be happy to see you on a cash basis, but your medical insurance company will not pay for your treatment. All co-payments or patient out-of-pocket fees are due and payable at the time of service.

Medicare Patients

We will bill Medicare for you. We will also bill your secondary insurance, if applicable. All co-payments and deductibles are due and payable at the time service is provided. Medicare does not cover tooth extractions or oral surgery done to facilitate wearing dentures except in certain rare instances for the treatment of cancer. If Medicare denies payment, you are responsible for charges.

Non-Covered Charges

Any charges not paid by your insurance carrier will require payment in full at the time services are provided or upon notice of insurance claim denial. To assist our patients, we offer financial arrangements and/or alternative financing sources. Please ask our billing personnel for additional information.

Workers Compensation

If your injury is work-related, we require the necessary insurance billing information and employer authorization form prior to your office visit or treatment.

Personal Injury Cases

This office does not accept liens nor bill for auto-accident or other liability or lawsuit-related cases. The patient is responsible for services provided at the time of service.

Follow-Up Visits

Periodic post-operative office visits may or may not be covered under your insurance plan; however, these may be required by the attending doctor to monitor your health.

Cancellation of Appointments

Our goal is to provide high quality of care at low cost to our patients and in fairness to other patients and the doctor, we require at least 24 hours’ notice when canceling an appointment. There is a $30 fee for missed appointments without 24-hour notification, which will be due and payable from you. The practice reserves the right to dismiss patients with excessive canceled appointments.

Explanation of Fees

Your fee for service includes your visit with the doctor based on the time and complexity of your condition and any treatment provided. In addition, proper attention to your case requires that the doctor spend more time working for you outside your direct visit with him or her. Such time may include:

• Creation of a permanent medical record.
• Review of all laboratory blood test results.
• Review of prior and current x-ray or scan reports.
• Preparation and mailing of consultation reports and follow-up visit letters and laboratory/scan results to referring doctors and any subsequent consulting.
• Phone consultation with referring or consulting practitioner and other health care providers about your case.
• Other phone calls to and from you and your family members for various reasons.
• Referral letters to any further specialists recommended by the doctor.
• Patient educational materials and medication samples when available.
• Any research done by the doctor about your case. The doctor uses medical libraries and computerized medical search services.
• Staff assistance regarding your visit.
• Arranging and coordinating other tests and consultations.
• Calls to and from pharmacies.
• Insurance application forms: medical/dental, disability, and life insurance.
• Insurance reports: health claims, disability claims to insurance and state, Medicare disability.
• Discussions (sometimes acrimonious) with hospitalization utilization review, insurance companies, or Medicare for ongoing hospitalization.
• Review and management of hospital records.
• Letters of necessity for medical services to insurance companies.
• Communication daily during admission with nurses, house staff, and attending physicians.
• Other reports and forms: jury duty, school, job, sick leave, back to work, etc.

In addition, Dr. Olsson participates extensively in continuing medical education, clinical research, residency teaching, and medical writing to keep up-to-date on the latest medical advances.

We look forward to a lasting and healthy relationship with you.

Insurance Information

Questions and Answers about your insurance coverage

Our practice involves a unique blend of medical and dental services. Some of the services we provide are covered by medical insurance and some are covered by dental policies. Our insurance coordinator deals with many different insurance companies. Some companies offer as many as six different dental and medical plans. The insurance alphabet soup changes policies and guidelines weekly. At times it can be impossible to accurately estimate a patient’s co-payment. Many insurance companies will not give out fees until after treatment is completed.

Will my insurance company pay all my medical bills?

Not always. The fact is that most insurance, whether it is medical, theft, fire, or life, merely helps the purchaser meet the expense of some need or misfortune. Life insurance will not support the surviving beneficiary for the rest of his/her life. It's the same with medical insurance, which is usually designed to help you meet medical bills – not to pay 100% of them. The range of benefits depends on the type of plan you have. Some plans exclude certain types of services such as anesthesia charges or "simple" extractions while other plans cover a full range of services. Some plans may cover as little as 30% or as much as 100% of services, with most falling in the 50-80% range.

How will I know what my insurance will pay?

If your recommended treatment exceeds $1,000, we will submit a pre-treatment estimate to your insurance carrier for a written statement of benefits. It may take 2-4 weeks for a response. Experience has shown us that co-workers or even human resource personnel are not reliable sources of information about your insurance benefits. Each case if different. The pre-treatment form submitted by our office has the proper insurance codes for their computers to calculate how much will be paid. Phone inquiries will be made on treatment plans under $1,000, however, benefits obtained over the phone are frequently inaccurate and are not a guarantee of payment.

What does it mean when my insurance company says the charges are over the "usual & customary?"

You may receive a communication from your insurance carrier suggesting that our fees were over and above the "usual and customary" rate for the services provided to you. Insurance companies base the amount of benefit on a chart or schedule of fees arbitrarily developed by them. How they determine the amount of benefit is a mystery to both the dental and medical professions, since they will not reveal this information. It should be pointed out that insurance companies make no fee allowances for the fact that your treatment is performed by a specialist. The fees paid by insurance companies are based solely on general dental and medical fees. An explanation of what goes into determining our fees is available for you.

Why don't all doctors charge the same?

Doctors’ fees vary for many reasons. A specialist, who sees fewer patients because more time must be spent with each one, and who has put in extra years of advanced study and spent more for scientific equipment, will normally charge higher fees. Our fees are based on the overhead involved in this practice, the treatment plan selected and the time it takes to provide you with superior care, and are in line with fees charged by the majority of offices with our training and experience. The type of treatment you need and receive from us is based upon our professional judgment and not on whether you are covered by an insurance plan. In addition, the fees are the same, whether or not a patient has insurance.

What can I do if I am not pleased with my insurance benefits?