Update regarding Advanced Neurosciences Dr. Hunter and colleagues
We are not closed, just severely limited in services.
We have suffered this year a major business disruption due to insurers not properly paying (take backs and failure to pay), and poor business contractors failing to apprise us in a timely fashion appropriately to act. Therefore the office is on minimal staffing and we are seeing only urgent issues. We will add staff back as the circumstances with the two major insurers are solved. We also may begin seeing patients in a different company.
COMMUNICATIONS
Watch www.neurosci.us for updates
frontdesk@neurosci.us is our front office receiving portal for information.
The urgent message service is FOR URGENT (meaning immediately serious problems) only.
Refills are managed as we can get them done and we may require a virtual visit. Please note that the State of Ky statutorily prevents us from conducting video visits.
Staff is working all day every day and has more than we can easily manage. Dr. Hunter has continued to see patients without the support we previously had of our care team. We have limited the practice to those visits which are obligatory to be done due to planned procedures or illness.
We have initiated an alliance with Twelve Stone Health, a pharmacy and infusion company, and plan to conduct operations for those patients receiving infusions out of their office in Spring Hill when possible.
The 101 Forrest Crossing Blvd Ste 103 space will continue to be used in the interim but is not fully staffed. Please do not appear at the business, visits are by appointment only. We will open a smaller space in the future to continue face to face encounters..
We ask your patience while we restructure our business, which is no fault of yours or ours, but we will try to make the practice more efficient and deal with the somewhat ridiculous situation provoked by insurers, the government.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
New patients are not being seen at the current time.
The telecommunications infrastructure is being reconfigured to permit a more efficient way of communicating with you.
Email is an efficient way to convey information which may need to be handled later. Please be sure you leave a patient name and number, what you need, and best time to contact.
Our urgent messaging system has continued to operate and we handle 24/7 requests from patients and physicians. We do not respond to messages left on this system which are unclear or do not include the pertinent information.
When you leave a message by telephone, please realize it takes time to screen and respond, especially if you don’t have a caller ID which reflects accurately who is calling. Please use email and the portal.
Request to authorize medications take a prolonged time to address due to lack of staff, unless done at the time of a visit. We will not authorize generic medications which are available cost-effectively with a coupon from participating pharmacies.
If you desire to exhort your insurer to stop bad behavior towards us which has resulted in your disruption, you can right BCBS TN (whether you have any BCBS plan), or Humana, if these are insurers of yours. Address your letters to “Patient complaints”. You can also complain to the state board of insurance in Tennessee at
YOUR ACCOUNT
Please pay on your account if you know you owe us. Accounts in arrears will be sent to collections. Please do this preferably by an electronic to paper check to our business address so we can be sure your account is properly credited.
MEDICAL RECORDS
Some of you will ask for medical records to continue care elsewhere.
We can expedite your request if you
(a) need only the pertinent information to continue your care,
(b) you delineate the medical professional, telephone number, and fax number which will receive the information.
We cannot respond to unsigned responses to transmit your entire medical records by fax.
We respond immediately to a nurse or physician calling for immediate information.
Please realize that medical records today are voluminous and cannot be transferred in totality by fax. If you send a request for ‘all medical records’ it must be accompanied by a signed release and a signed statement as follows:
“I authorize preparation of an entire set of medical records and agree to pay the associated costs. I understand I will be required to pay a fee in advance of the preparation of these records.”
We will prepare a quote for the records and reply by email. You may pay by check either in mail or person. Once we receive the payment, we will prepare and transmit by mail or electronically this information.
The pertinent information on costs follows:
• Fee shall not exceed $20.00 for medical records 5 pages or less in length
• $0.50 per page for each page copied after the first 5 pages
• Actual cost of mailing
• Source: TN Code § 63-2-102 (2018)
• https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/2018/title-63/chapter-2/section-63-2-102/
A request for your “entire medical record to be transferred” means we will no longer provide health care to you, as you are receiving it elsewhere. A statement of your account will be sent to you. If it is not paid in a timely fashion, your account will be sent to collections.