|
Medical Articles
SUMMIT COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY ANNOUNCES AFFORDABLE BLOOD TESTS FOR THE UNINSURED
Updated March 01, 2010
The Summit County Medical Society announces that Pioneer Physicians Network has agreed to perform blood tests for people without health insurance at rates much less than those charged by area hospitals and commercial laboratories.
Pioneer, a Greater Akron area physician network, will offer the tests at four of its sites. The charge for a basic metabolic panel, for example, one of the most commonly ordered blood tests, will be $14. An article in the Akron Beacon Journal earlier this year showed that people without insurance are charged from $22.60 to $175 for this test at area labs and hospitals
Patients without insurance typically pay full charges for blood tests. However, people with health insurance pay far less because their insurance companies negotiate deeply discounted rates from hospitals and commercial laboratories.
The high cost of lab tests for uninsured patients poses undue financial stress on uninsured people, and some of them simply forego the tests, said Doug Lefton, MD, a family physician in Fairlawn and special projects coordinator for the medical society. “It’s also a problem for doctors,” he said. “It’s hard to treat patients without the important information that blood tests provide.”
Mark Meyer, MD, president of Pioneer, said “This is a great way for us as an organization and as a group of physicians concerned about the plight of the uninsured, to give back to the community,”
Patients will be able to take any doctor’s lab order to one of Pioneer’s three draw sites. Patients must phone ahead to make an appointment for the blood draw, and will be expected to pay at time of service with cash, check or credit card. A $5 draw fee will also be charged.
Most blood and urine tests will be run at Pioneer’s own lab in Tallmadge. Specialized tests will be sent out to reference laboratories. Results for commonly ordered tests will be faxed to the patient’s doctor by the next day.
The four draw site locations are Pioneer’s central laboratory, 65 Community Rd,
Tallmadge, (330) 633-6601; Hearthstone Family Practice in Unionton, (330) 896-6111; Columbia Wood Medical Group in Norton, (330) 825-7371; and Pioneer’s South Main Street Medical Center at 4880 South Main St, Green (330) 644-2700.
More information, including directions to the three blood draw locations and a comprehensive list of available tests and prices is available on the Pioneer website at www.pioneerphysicians.com.
The announcement today followed a 4-month search by the medical society to find a lab that would offer prices at or close to what Medicare pays. Dr. Lefton said he had contacted all the local hospitals and commercial labs and that only Pioneer was willing to offer such low rates. “I give a lot of credit to Pioneer for stepping up to the plate on this,” he said.
He said the medical society invites other labs to offer low prices to uninsured people. If so, they will be added to the medical society’s webpage, www.scmsoc.org, which contains a section on resources for people without insurance, including a link to the Pioneer website.
One of those resources the medical society notes on its webpage is the Hospital Care Assurance Program. This program, mandated by the state, requires all hospitals to offer free care—including free blood tests—to anyone whose family income is below federal poverty guidelines. The 2009 poverty level is $22,050 for a family of four. Summa hospitals, and LabCare Plus, the lab system owned by Summa, go farther than the requirements and offer free care to patients who earn up to 200 percent of the poverty level.
The Summit County Medical Society’s mission is to represent physicians in the community and to improve the health of the community. It has 400 physician members and is a part of the Ohio State Medical Society.
Pioneer Physicians Network is primary care network of 24 doctors in 9 locations throughout the Greater Akron area.
LOWEST COST BLOOD TESTS
Blood tests at Medicare prices are available through this website. We know of no lower-priced alternative for the cash paying patient. The labs are drawn at one of three Summit county LabCorp sites. LabCorp is a national lab with 1,600 sites. Anyone near a LabCorp location nationwide is encouraged to use this website to obtain the same low-cost blood tests. On the ordering webpage, click on the section named “Locate a Lab” to find the LabCorp location nearest you. For background information on this program, click here.
Some important information: you will need a credit card, online access, and a printer. You can see the price of each test before you order it. Fill out the section asking for your doctor’s information, including his fax number, so that results can be sent to him or her. There is $9.50 service fee each time tests are ordered. After you have paid with your credit card, you print out a requisition for the blood test to take to the LabCorp location nearest you. For commonly ordered tests, results will probably be available the next day. For questions or problems, call Prepaid at 1-800-903-3921.
Tests must be ordered at the Prepaid ordering webpage. The test name or the test number is entered into the "product search" box at the top left hand corner of the page.
We have listed common tests below, because some tests have more than one name. Look for the tests your doctor has ordered, and then enter the test numbers in the "product search box." Click on the "search" button and you will be taken to the test's page; then click "add to cart." Alternatively, you can click on the test number below and you will be taken directly to the test's page, where you click on "add to cart." Then use your browser's back button to return to this page to choose any other tests your doctor has ordered for you.
If you don't see your test below, you will have to enter the test name in the "product search" box.
Tip: if you print out this page, you can take it to your doctor's office and ask him to circle the tests he wants you to get. For tests not listed, he may be able to go online and link though this site to the Prepaid ordering webpage and look up the tests he wants for you. Or, if he has a LabCare book, he can look up the test number.
When you are done choosing tests, click on the “Cart” in the upper left hand corner. This will take you to checkout.
COMMONLY ORDERED TESTS
BMP (also called basic metabolic panel, Chem 8, Renal Panel, or SMA 8) - 322758
CMP (also called CMP 12/14, SMAC, SMA 12, Chem 12 or BMP plus liver or hepatic function)- 302085
Comprehensive Wellness Panel - (this test includes BMP, liver or hepatic function, lipids or cholesterol, and iron) - 300909
CBC -complete blood count (also known as hemoglobin or hematocrit) - 005009
Glucose (also known as blood sugar or FBS) - 001818
Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1C) - 001453
Hepatic (liver) function panel (also known as LFT's, and includes Bilirubin, Alk Phos, ALT, AST,SGOT,SGPT) - 322755
Hepatitis panel (screens for hepatitis A,B,and C) - 322744
HIV screen (AIDS) - 083824
Lipid panel (also known as cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides) - 303756
TSH/Thyroid Profile with TSH (includes TSH and free T4) - 000620
Urinalysis - 003772
Urine culture - 008847
LESS COMMONLY ORDERED TESTS
C-reactive protein (CRP) (for inflammation) - 006627
C-reactive protein- Cardiac (also known as high-sensitivity CRP, HS CRP, or CRP-S)(for heart risk) - 120766
Ferritin - 004598
INR (also known as PT or prothrombin time) - 005199
Iron (and TIBC) - 001321
PSA - Prostate Specific Antigen - 010322
Rheumatoid factor (RF) - 006502
Sedimentation rate (also known as SED rate, ESR, Westergen) - 005215
Serum Pregnancy test - quantitative (HCG) - 004116
Testosterone - 144980
|
