My husband asked for his wellness exam and when the Medicare summary came to us, I noticed there were two charges for the one appointment--one said 'wellness' and one was titled 'established patient visit.' I thought it was a mistake so I contacted the billing department at Aurora and they explained that the doctor must have talked about something "not normally covered in the wellness exam." I then called my doctor's office and they listed what was talked about, some of which included his past issues such as high blood pressure and gout. No additional tests or examination was done outside the scope of a wellness visit. Also this was not a followup visit for treating any of his issues.
So then I talked to someone at Medicare and it was explained that Aurora had the right to charge for two appointments even though there was only one. I know the Medicare book said there could be additional charges when asking for a wellness visit, but the charges were for two appointments, not for some test or procedure. Okay, if the appointment went beyond the scope of wellness and they were talking about his high blood pressure or gout, etc., then why not just cancel out the wellness and charge it as a established patient appointment? If Medicare allows doctors to double charge for one appointment block, then how is this good for Medicare? At this point, I will never schedule a wellness visit again. I don't want my doctor to have an excuse to charge Medicare twice for one half hour visit.
So then I talked to someone at Medicare and it was explained that Aurora had the right to charge for two appointments even though there was only one. I know the Medicare book said there could be additional charges when asking for a wellness visit, but the charges were for two appointments, not for some test or procedure. Okay, if the appointment went beyond the scope of wellness and they were talking about his high blood pressure or gout, etc., then why not just cancel out the wellness and charge it as a established patient appointment? If Medicare allows doctors to double charge for one appointment block, then how is this good for Medicare? At this point, I will never schedule a wellness visit again. I don't want my doctor to have an excuse to charge Medicare twice for one half hour visit.