Kipton J.V. Lundquist, M.D.
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
r. Lundquist is particularly sensitive to the soaring costs of medical care and insurance coverage. He is concerned that his patients understand their personal situation as best they can, and he and his staff will work with his patients when problems arise, as they frequently do.
Plastic surgery is somewhat unique in the fact that it includes both insurance-covered, usually reconstructive surgery procedures, and cosmetic surgery procedures that are not covered by insurance but are paid by patients. This dual nature of reimbursement helps us to have a broad experience in many different situations.
A key concept is "medical necessity." Insurance usually restricts any payments only to that which they deem medically necessary. Notice that it isn’t the doctor or the patient that gets to decide this. This can be a source of frustration. And, even if a procedure is medically necessary, payment questions are abundant. Your policy must be in effect at the time of service. The services might need to be provided at certain locations only. There are often deductibles and/or co-payments that must be made. Referrals and other paper work items may be required. There are hundreds of insurance companies and thousands of different policies. There can be specific restrictions or exclusions of certain procedures. The details of your specific contract will control your personal situation, and you need to understand them.
Dr. Lundquist and his staff will work with each patient to try and provide the best, safest, and most cost-efficient care that they can. In some cases a prior authorization can be obtained that clarifies payment issues with an insurance company. Costs of cosmetic surgery are described in the Cosmetic Surgery Payment Policy Sheet on this web site.
Our main promise is that we will all try to help you with this often-confusing area where we can. Unfortunately, we often don’t know that there are any problems unless you let us know. We don’t see your hospital bills. We don’t always see every piece of information from your insurance company. You must let us know if you are experiencing problems with your bill. Don’t let them become an issue when we might be able to correct or adjust them.
The entire billing system, except for cosmetic surgery fees, is being handled by Kaleidoscope, a medical billing company. All billing questions should be addressed to them initially.
(952) 746-6998