COVID19Dear Parents, As you know, COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is making many people sick in our area. Most people are afraid to come out, even if they are sick. We understand that our area is under a unique situation. No one knows how long this situation will last. We are trying our best how to take care of all patient’s needs to the highest standard. On one hand, we have a moral duty to our patients, and on the other hand, we have to reduce burden to local Emergency rooms. It is a unique and difficult situation. It is creating a lot of anxiety among our staff for the safety of their own health, and by default, their family’s health as well. As a temporary measure, we will be closing the office from March 31st to April 11th. We are executing this decision as are many other practices in the area. We will be able to resume normal working hours, once situation gets better. In order to be able to provide our patients with the highest level of care possible, we have aggressively implemented a plan to begin telehealth appointments. This service is only currently available to our existing patients. Apologies in advance for the length of this communication, but we are trying to make this as smooth and efficient a process for you as possible. In general, many common complaints can be addressed via telehealth sick visits and we are able to perform some of our medication rechecks, conferences, or ADHD visits via this platform as well. Please note if you would like to make a telehealth appointment you must call our office to speak with one of our office staff. We want to be able to triage your call to make sure it is handled in the most medically appropriate manner. IMPORTANT BILLING AND REGULATORY INFORMATION If any information has changed since your last visit to the office, please let us know when you schedule your appointment over the phone with our office staff. These visits are submitted to your insurance like visits to the office are and we are expecting that they will be covered in the same manner as in-office visits by your insurance company, however there is a possibility that they may not be covered. In cases where the insurance company does not cover the visit, you will be responsible for payment. If sick visits in the office are typically applied to your deductible or have a co-insurance requirement, this will be the same for telehealth visits. If a co-pay is required for a sick visit under your plan, it may be required for a telehealth visit. Please understand that there may be a bill associated with these visits just as there may be with in-office visits, and we will do our best to process these claims expeditiously. Please be patient with our office staff as we work through these issues. In order to utilize the system and to be compliant with current regulations, you must be located in the state of NJ at the time of the telehealth visit. You can be a resident of another state but need to physically be in NJ when the visit occurs with our provider. Should this change, we will notify you as soon as we find out. We look forward to adding this service to our practice for our patients and to continue to provide you with the pediatric care we would expect for our own children. As of today, WE DO NOT PERFORM ANY CORONAVIRUS TESTING. This situation might change and we will notify you once we start doing testing. Sincerely, Physicians of Highland Park Pediatrics. |
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