Referrals

• I forgot to get a referral and my appointment is today. What can I do?
  • Referrals cannot be expected upon short notice.   An appointment with one of our doctors is required before our office can produce a referral.  Your options are:

  Cancel your appointment with the specialist, call our office for an   appointment to get the necessary referral.

  Go ahead to your appointment but be prepared to sign a waiver indicating that you realize you will be responsible for payment should a referral not be obtained.  Call our office to schedule appointment to get the necessary referral.  This appointment should be within 12 days of your specialist appointment, as some insurance companies have limits on back-dating.

• I got a new insurance that requires referrals. How do I get a referral?
  • Call our office to schedule an appointment.  Your doctor will discuss the requested referral with you and provide referrals as appropriate.
• I forgot to bring my referral with me. Now what?
  • Some specialist's offices will not see a patient without a referral in hand.  Most, however, are willing to let you send it in after the appointment.  You may be asked to sign a waiver indicating that you know you will be responsible for payment should your referral not arrive.
  • If you're having trouble, call our office and we will fax another copy for you.
• Do I need to have a copy of my referral?
  • Yes.  We will fax a copy of your referral to the specialist.  We strongly recommend that you hand carry a copy to your fist appointment to make certain there are no delays related to the referral.
• Why do I have to come in to see the doctor at Elizabeth Family Health to get a referral to my specialist?
  •  If your insurance company requires referrals to specialists or prior authorization for procedures, it does so because it wants your Primary Care Physician to coordinate your overall care.  Your insurance company is asking our doctor to tell them that the procedure or the visit to the specialist is the best course of action for you.
  • Because our doctor must make this determination, we require that the patient meet with the doctor.
  • You will be asked to schedule an office visit with our doctor a minimum of once a year for long term referrals and each time you request a referral to a new specialist.