Insurance Myths and Truths

Insurance can be intimidating when you're not sure how much it's going to cover your care or not. Don't let insurance woes stand in the way of getting your chiropractic care. Your health will always come first with Dr. Bob!
There has been a question that keeps circling our offices at Lowcountry Chiropractic and we want to address and ease our patients and future patient's minds with the best answer we can. We are going to go off-topic from our normal blog topics, but an important question needs to be addressed immediately.  That question is  "Does insurance cover chiropractic care"? Take a deep breath - we understand the stress that can come with insurance and having to pay out of pocket expenses before you meet your deductible. In general, yes, insurance does cover chiropractic care. A lot of popular insurance companies cover the care including Aetna, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Cigna, and Medicare. But paying for chiropractic care with these companies and with many others does come with a few distinct caveats that you need to be aware of.

Insurance policies have changed dramatically since Obama Care was put into action. More people needed insurance due to Obama Care, so insurance cost went up. In turn, insurance companies raised their costs. Ever since this change, many companies that offered insurance to their employees had to change the insurance they offered because the cost became so high. Companies are choosing to offer their employees insurance plans that have higher deductibles to deal with this change in cost. Your deductible is the amount of money you have to pay out of pocket before your insurance kicks in and pays for the rest of your expenses. In a lot of cases, the plans many companies used to offer their employees had much lower deductibles - and some of them had no deductibles at all. When you went to the doctor, all you needed to worry about was the co-pay and your insurance would cover the rest. Today it is a much different story. Many people are paying more out of pocket than they ever have for insurance. Deductibles can now reach upwards to $6000, which is really intimidating. Insurance today is now consistently covering less than it ever has before.

In many cases, a lot of patients, including those that come into the offices here at Lowcountry Chiropractic, don't get sick enough to even get close to reaching their high deductibles. Which of course, hits the issue of "will my insurance cover my chiropractic care". There are a lot of plans out there that do have lower deductibles that make it easier on you and your wallet when dealing with your medical expenses. Blue Cross and Blue Shield, the state Blue Cross and Blue Shield for Teachers, and Medicare for seniors are some of the best options out there with lower deductibles. But with so many insurance companies out there it's understandable and very easy to get confused about what your plan is, what it offers to you, and not knowing how much you will end up having to pay at the end of the day. If your deductible is just too high - it might be time to do a little research to see if what your company is offering you is the best option, or if there is something out there that is better for you.  If you're confused about what your plan is, call into the office and we will check your insurance plan right away and see what kind of deductible you have, where you are in reaching it, and how much insurance will or will not be covering your next visit.

But don't panic yet. If you haven't hit that deductible, or your insurance that you have just flat out doesn't cover chiropractic care, don't fret. First off, you don't know how much it costs until you ask. Come in and have your appointment with Dr. Bob and get diagnosed with what care you need to get better, and then see what the cost is. Don't just say it's too expensive and you can't afford it. Your health is more important to Dr. Bob than anything. The biggest thing we want our patients to know is that one of our main goals outside of keeping you healthy is not letting finances become a barrier between you and getting treatment. If you come in and you need a certain amount of treatments, but can't afford the initial out of pocket expense, that's okay. The office will work with you and put you on a budget or payment plan to help you get the care that you need.  

Let's think about the bigger picture here. If you have serious back pain and you get 2 to 3 spinal injections to care for that pain, the same amount of money for those injections can pay for a year of chiropractic care with Dr. Bob. So really, it's not as expensive as you think. It is also amazing preventative care. If you are a candidate for chiropractic care and you do the right thing for your back and come and get your treatments regularly and when it is needed, you are avoiding serious pain and spending tons of money later down the line. Consistent chiropractic check-ups and treatments can help you avoid getting MRIs, pain medications, injections, and even surgeries. These forms of care can be REALLY expensive - especially if you don't have insurance. So if you take care of your back now and get the chiropractic care that you need, you're going to be much healthier and in much better shape than if you let the idea of cost get in the way of not getting the care you need.

Unfortunately, Tricare, the insurance the military offers those in service does not cover chiropractic care. As much as we have been trying to work with them and get it covered, it still isn't covered. So, we offer a very nice discount for those who do have Tricare. We recognize the service and want to make sure you are taken care of.

We hope that has answered and helped some of your questions and fears of dealing with your insurance at the Chiropractor. Don't let it ever stand in the way of getting the help you need, we are here to help. If you have any questions or are still not understanding your insurance, don't hesitate to call. We are here to help you figure it out. We look forward to seeing you in the office the next time you come in!