HEALTH INSURANCE
We do not accept any health insurance and have opted out of Medicare. The model of medical care covered by most insurance is definitely “disease care,” with appointments focused on prescriptions and financial disincentives for not following official guidelines (vaccinations, colonoscopies, and other issues not relevant to this practice). This fits very poorly with a functional approach.
If your insurance reimburses you for out-of-network care, then we can provide you with a superbill for completed visits and you may submit it for reimbursement.
We try to reduce costs for you in the following ways:
The question for you is whether the benefit you are hoping to obtain from this approach is worth the cost to your time, energy, and finances.
COVID
The COVID crisis presents a good opportunity to focus on improving our baseline health. Reduced travel and social engagement means time freed up for designing a healthful diet, and for focusing on mindfulness, exercise, and detoxification. For many people however, symptoms have worsened, likely due to the many pressures such as fear and anxiety, isolation, bad air quality, and sometimes, upcoming elections. The effects of these pressures will be felt for several months or longer.
Given that we are at the crossroad of these realities, I have modified my programs to offer shorter, more frequent visits, in order to monitor progress and offer more support. All visits are still virtual, due to the poorly understood dangers posed by prolonged face-to-face contact and indoor ventilation, and the repeated rise of new variants. The windows in my prior office didn't open, so I have decided to close the office permanently.
BILLING DETAILS
Our initial contact is relatively short (20-25 minutes) and inexpensive ($75). The goal for me is to hear what you are experiencing and what your health goals are, so I can describe how I would address your issues and why.
Please be prepared to access the link we will send you and purchase the $75 “Initial Contact.” In order for you to make the purchase, please email me so we can choose a time, and I will send you a link to Hint Health, an online payment platform.
PLEASE NOTE: Our payment processor will ask you to sign a PHI waiver, which allows them to email you a confirmation of your payment when the charge goes through. If you don’t sign this waiver, the charges we put through your account won’t result in any confirmation emails.
FIRST MEDICAL VISIT
The next step in working together is the comprehensive review of your medical and life history, the “First Medical Visit.” This visit usually lasts 90 minutes (cost is pro-rated $500/hour). Please complete online questionnaires ahead of the visit.
PLEASE NOTE: In order to reduce wait times for new patient appointments, we are now requiring a $500 deposit at the time of booking the first medical visit, and a 2-week notice for cancellation in order to refund this deposit if needed. Follow up visits are more flexible.
At the end of this visit, we provide you with several recommendations, including supplements, diet and exercise or other recommendations, and we set up testing that will allow us to move forward.
We also usually request that you sign up for a $350/month intensive tier agreement. At this tier, you agree to have monthly 30-40 minute appointments for 4 months. The tier also comes with full supplement discount (35% off the list price on Fullscript) and a 20% discount on face-to-face visits in addition to the 40 minute visits if they are needed. We provide email communication for clarification of issues discussed during appointments.
SUBSEQUENT FOLLOW UP
The first follow up visit occurs about 1 month after the first medical visit. We review what you tried to implement, and how things went for you. We will also review available lab results if available, and make additional recommendations.
The second, third, and fourth follow up visits will be similar to the second follow up visit.
At the fourth follow up visit, we decide whether we want to continue at the same pace for 2 more months, or transition to a moderate tier, at the cost of $200/month, where you commit to one 40 minute appointment every 2 months. You can stay on either tier until you are satisfied that you have made as much progress as can be made using this approach.
You then graduate, if desired, from the intensive tiers to a maintenance membership, $49/month. A membership is required if there are medications you want me to continue to make available to you. At this membership level (membership costs cannot be reimbursed by insurance) you get 20% off any follow up visits, and 20% off supplements.
ONGOING PATIENTS
Once you reach your goals or have been in the Intensive Tier for at least 4 months, you can sign up for the “Maintenance Membership“ ($49 monthly) so you can stay connected to the practice, including receiving prescription refills if needed, and a 20% discount on appointments.
If you do not want to sign up for a membership, you can still pay for individual appointments ($540/hour). We request an hour-long visit if you have not been seen in the last year.
IN SUMMARY
– Initial contact: 20-25 minutes, $75
– First medical: usually 90 minutes, $750 and start Intensive Tier $350/month for 4 months
– At 5th month: choice between continuing Intensive Tier or switching to Moderate Tier ($200/month) for 2 months
- At 7th month: choice between tiers or Maintenance Membership $49/month.
Summary of programs:
Intensive tier: $350/month, full supplement discount; monthly 30-40 minute visit, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour)
Regular tier: $200/month, full supplement discount; 30-40 minute visit every other month, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour)
Maintenance membership; $49/month, medication refills, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour), 50% off one 55 minute appointment for each 12 months of membership, 20% supplement discount.
No membership: no medication refills, no discount on supplements, visits are $540 per hour.
Prices are subject to change, usually on January 1st. Maintenance Membership fee will remain unchanged in 2022.
WE AIM FOR A THOROUGH INTERVENTION
In order to fix a chronic medical issue that has proven resistant to other approaches, we usually have to address several aspects of physiology.
EXCEPTIONS
1. Some people only want “preventive functional medicine.“ We may only need 2 follow up visits if there aren’t significant symptoms. People with few symptoms typically have very few deficiencies and toxicities, which means we can move quickly from one stage to the next.
2. It is possible that the problems resolve faster than we expected, in which case we will transition to a maintenance membership sooner.
3. Many young children do not require a 90 minute first medical visit. We pro-rate the fees.
We do not accept any health insurance and have opted out of Medicare. The model of medical care covered by most insurance is definitely “disease care,” with appointments focused on prescriptions and financial disincentives for not following official guidelines (vaccinations, colonoscopies, and other issues not relevant to this practice). This fits very poorly with a functional approach.
If your insurance reimburses you for out-of-network care, then we can provide you with a superbill for completed visits and you may submit it for reimbursement.
We try to reduce costs for you in the following ways:
- we do not profit from the sale of supplements during active treatment
- we use discounted laboratory testing where available
- we are happy to rank tests and supplements by order of importance so you know which ones to prioritize
The question for you is whether the benefit you are hoping to obtain from this approach is worth the cost to your time, energy, and finances.
COVID
The COVID crisis presents a good opportunity to focus on improving our baseline health. Reduced travel and social engagement means time freed up for designing a healthful diet, and for focusing on mindfulness, exercise, and detoxification. For many people however, symptoms have worsened, likely due to the many pressures such as fear and anxiety, isolation, bad air quality, and sometimes, upcoming elections. The effects of these pressures will be felt for several months or longer.
Given that we are at the crossroad of these realities, I have modified my programs to offer shorter, more frequent visits, in order to monitor progress and offer more support. All visits are still virtual, due to the poorly understood dangers posed by prolonged face-to-face contact and indoor ventilation, and the repeated rise of new variants. The windows in my prior office didn't open, so I have decided to close the office permanently.
BILLING DETAILS
Our initial contact is relatively short (20-25 minutes) and inexpensive ($75). The goal for me is to hear what you are experiencing and what your health goals are, so I can describe how I would address your issues and why.
Please be prepared to access the link we will send you and purchase the $75 “Initial Contact.” In order for you to make the purchase, please email me so we can choose a time, and I will send you a link to Hint Health, an online payment platform.
PLEASE NOTE: Our payment processor will ask you to sign a PHI waiver, which allows them to email you a confirmation of your payment when the charge goes through. If you don’t sign this waiver, the charges we put through your account won’t result in any confirmation emails.
FIRST MEDICAL VISIT
The next step in working together is the comprehensive review of your medical and life history, the “First Medical Visit.” This visit usually lasts 90 minutes (cost is pro-rated $500/hour). Please complete online questionnaires ahead of the visit.
PLEASE NOTE: In order to reduce wait times for new patient appointments, we are now requiring a $500 deposit at the time of booking the first medical visit, and a 2-week notice for cancellation in order to refund this deposit if needed. Follow up visits are more flexible.
At the end of this visit, we provide you with several recommendations, including supplements, diet and exercise or other recommendations, and we set up testing that will allow us to move forward.
We also usually request that you sign up for a $350/month intensive tier agreement. At this tier, you agree to have monthly 30-40 minute appointments for 4 months. The tier also comes with full supplement discount (35% off the list price on Fullscript) and a 20% discount on face-to-face visits in addition to the 40 minute visits if they are needed. We provide email communication for clarification of issues discussed during appointments.
SUBSEQUENT FOLLOW UP
The first follow up visit occurs about 1 month after the first medical visit. We review what you tried to implement, and how things went for you. We will also review available lab results if available, and make additional recommendations.
The second, third, and fourth follow up visits will be similar to the second follow up visit.
At the fourth follow up visit, we decide whether we want to continue at the same pace for 2 more months, or transition to a moderate tier, at the cost of $200/month, where you commit to one 40 minute appointment every 2 months. You can stay on either tier until you are satisfied that you have made as much progress as can be made using this approach.
You then graduate, if desired, from the intensive tiers to a maintenance membership, $49/month. A membership is required if there are medications you want me to continue to make available to you. At this membership level (membership costs cannot be reimbursed by insurance) you get 20% off any follow up visits, and 20% off supplements.
ONGOING PATIENTS
Once you reach your goals or have been in the Intensive Tier for at least 4 months, you can sign up for the “Maintenance Membership“ ($49 monthly) so you can stay connected to the practice, including receiving prescription refills if needed, and a 20% discount on appointments.
If you do not want to sign up for a membership, you can still pay for individual appointments ($540/hour). We request an hour-long visit if you have not been seen in the last year.
IN SUMMARY
– Initial contact: 20-25 minutes, $75
– First medical: usually 90 minutes, $750 and start Intensive Tier $350/month for 4 months
– At 5th month: choice between continuing Intensive Tier or switching to Moderate Tier ($200/month) for 2 months
- At 7th month: choice between tiers or Maintenance Membership $49/month.
Summary of programs:
Intensive tier: $350/month, full supplement discount; monthly 30-40 minute visit, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour)
Regular tier: $200/month, full supplement discount; 30-40 minute visit every other month, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour)
Maintenance membership; $49/month, medication refills, discount on additional visits ($430 instead of $540/hour), 50% off one 55 minute appointment for each 12 months of membership, 20% supplement discount.
No membership: no medication refills, no discount on supplements, visits are $540 per hour.
Prices are subject to change, usually on January 1st. Maintenance Membership fee will remain unchanged in 2022.
WE AIM FOR A THOROUGH INTERVENTION
In order to fix a chronic medical issue that has proven resistant to other approaches, we usually have to address several aspects of physiology.
- The functional medicine approach is a layered, systematic approach that addresses one basic physiological “function“ before moving on to the next.
- The first targets are usually digestion, nutrient deficiencies, and glucose regulation. You can expect to see benefits as you begin to address these aspects of your physiology.
- Then we target possible environmental toxicities, for example from heavy metals, mold, or industrial chemicals and pesticides.
- Finally, we look for possible chronic infections. These become chronic specifically because of nutrient deficiencies, digestive issues, inflammation, or toxicity. They may resolve on their own, or require targeted intervention. Completing the course of treatment is meant to prevent backsliding into your original dysfunctions.
EXCEPTIONS
1. Some people only want “preventive functional medicine.“ We may only need 2 follow up visits if there aren’t significant symptoms. People with few symptoms typically have very few deficiencies and toxicities, which means we can move quickly from one stage to the next.
2. It is possible that the problems resolve faster than we expected, in which case we will transition to a maintenance membership sooner.
3. Many young children do not require a 90 minute first medical visit. We pro-rate the fees.