Arriving for your appointments
New patients should arrive 10-15 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment time. This will allow time to complete any necessary paperwork and/or to input your information into our computer system. Returning patients should arrive 5 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment time.
Well visits will often require updated information and developmental questionnaires. Please have them completed prior to the appointment. You will receive instructions by email or text.
Changing and Canceling Appointments
Please provide as much time as possible when canceling or changing an appointment. At a minimum, we ask that you provide at least 24-hours’ notice when canceling an appointment.
● Email [email protected]
● Call 301-984-9490
● Text 301-984-9490
Missed Appointment Fee
In order to provide the best possible care and to minimize wait times, you must provide timely notice to our office when you need to change or cancel an appointment. Failing to notify our office of appointment cancellation with at least 24 hours notice, or arriving at your scheduled appointment more than 15 minutes late, will result in a Missed Appointment Fee. Late arrivals will be seen as time permits, but it may be necessary to reschedule the appointment. The late fee will be placed on your child’s account, and your credit card on file will be charged. The charge cannot be billed to your insurance company and must be paid in full prior to future appointments. The fee amount for missed appointments without notice is:
- $100 for a missed well-child visit without 24 hours notice
- $50 for a missed sick-child visit without 24 hours notice
Families who have 3 or more missed or late appointments may be discharged from the practice.
Well-visits and Sick Visits Copays
Co-pays, deductibles and account balances are due at the time of the visit. Copays that have not been paid prior to the visit will be charged to the credit card on file at the end of the business day.
In some cases, during a well-visit, a concern or issue may need to be addressed that is beyond the scope allowed in a well-visit. In these instances, an additional “sick visit” appointment may be added to the “well visit”. As a contracted provider with your insurance plan, we are required to bill your child’s insurance for the added sick visit and your insurance may require a copay. Please understand that this is a requirement by your plan, and we are not allowed to waive this copay fee. If you are responsible for a copay for the sick visit, it will be added to your child’s account and will be charged to your card on file at the end of the business day.
Patient Portal
You may also be able to access our patient portal for communicating with our office and accessing health information and administrative forms. Please email the front desk for information on accessing the patient portal at [email protected].
Telehealth Visits
Telehealth visits may be an option for medical problems that don’t require a physical exam. Telehealth appointments are billed the same way as in-person visits. As such, co-pays, deductibles and other charges apply to telehealth visits in the same manner as in-person visits. Coverage varies between insurance companies, so it’s important you’re informed regarding the services and limitations of your insurance plan.
Prescription Refills
If you call or email the office for a prescription refill, we may require that you schedule an in-person or telehealth visit. If we’re able to refill the prescription without a visit, allow 2-4 days for the prescription refill to be completed.
Patients 18 years and older
When your child becomes 18 years old, she or he will have sole access to their personal health information. They may release authorization to a parent(s) to be informed of medical care and treatment, however, this release must be signed by them and kept on file in their medical records.
Vaccine Policy
Because we firmly believe in the safety, efficacy, and usefulness of vaccinations in general, we strongly recommend adhering to the immunization schedules published by the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Under certain circumstances your doctor may agree to make minor modifications to your child’s vaccine schedule in order to accommodate and be respectful of your requests.
Forms
Patients must be up to date with annual well visits for all school or camp forms. f your child needs school, camp or sports physical forms, let the receptionists or nursing staff know at the time of check-in. It usually takes our office 2-4 days to complete a camp or school form. If you need a form sooner than 24 hours, or if there are multiple requests for school forms, there will be an additional rush-fee of $25.
Medical Records
For new patients, please arrange for a copy of your child’s past medical records to be sent to our office prior to your child’s visIt. Please ensure that all records, and most importantly, immunization records, are included. Medical records may be sent by email or by fax to our office.