Patient Guide FAQ

With the advent of Healthcare Reform (ObamaCare) and its anticipated increase in healthcare access and thus in patient volume and traffic yet coupled with the perpetual shortage of primary care physicians, it becomes apparent that in order for us to continue our mission to provide beyond-the-standard medical care, it is vital for our patients to be certain that we are the right practice for them.

To determine whether Pineapple Health is right for you, whether you are a new or established patient, please spend some time exploring our website, our attached videos, and especially our Office Policies and About Our Patients page, so that you can have a good general idea regarding our practice philosophy and the types of patients that are drawn and choose to come to us. If you find our practice philosophy and administrative policy appropriate and agreeable, then Pineapple Health may be the right choice for you. Often times many administrative issues or concerns regarding our practice that you may have are already answered thoroughly in our Office Policies section rendering many phone inquiries unnecessary.

If you too believe that Health is Earned and not just Entitled, then once again, Welcome to Pineapple Health, your medical home where our patients are truly Champions!

Our Laboratory Services

As you are well aware, we are a primary care practice that specializes in wellness and preventive medicine especially heart disease and stroke prevention. As such, with your consent, we often times will perform advanced cardiometabolic laboratory testing that are designed to assess your health status at a more profound level than the more superficial testing that most insurance companies encourage as some of them may even advise advanced testing as either experimental or medically unnecessary, though we now know as a fact that most chronic diseases are mediated by inflammation and that 50% of heart attacks occur in individuals with so-called normal cholesterol.

Therefore, in order for our practitioners to continue to provide beyond the standard of care and to focus on true healthcare rather than just sickcare, we have chosen to utilize laboratory services that generally do not use a collecting department so that unlike other more standard laboratories, patients typically may not be placed in collections when they receive billing statements should insurance companies decline their laboratory services, though not guaranteed. This sufficiently allows us to practice quality healthcare while maintaining cost-effectiveness for our patients.

Services

Visiting your doctor on a regular basis is key to a healthy life. Whether you’re feeling the effects of the common cold or just coming in for a checkup, we want to make sure you have all the facts you need to make an educated decision.

Services we offer include:

  • COMPREHENSIVE EXPANDED ANNUAL PHYSICAL including Wellness Exam with ADVANCED LABORATORY TESTING, LEVEL 1 DIAGNOSTICS, & ENVIRONMENTAL TESTING
  • TREATMENT OF ACUTE DISEASES
  • TREATMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASE
  • PREVENTIVE CARE
  • WOMEN’S HEALTH CARE

Emergency Treatment

If you have a life-threatening or severe injury, call 911 or go directly to the nearest hospital emergency room.

For more detailed information, please refer to our FAQ section below.

FAQ

The following FAQ section is designed to complement the information already available to you from our Office Policies page and the rest of the website.

What is the theme of Pineapple Health?

In addition to routine primary care services, Pineapple Health focuses on all things anti-inflammatory including cardiometabolic preventive care, cholesterol management, and allergy treatments. (Environmental testing is now included as part of our comprehensive physical.)

What is the professional background of Dr. Chan?

Dr. Chan is a board-certified family physician who had completed advanced preventive medicine training. In particular, Dr. Chan is a Lipidologist (lipid- and cholesterol-related disorders specialist) of which there are only a few in the state of AZ. Among other credentials, Dr. Chan anticipates becoming the first in AZ to achieve simultaneous board certification status in both Integrative Medicine and Lipidology, thus creating the field of Integrative Lipidology.

Does Dr. Chan practice holistic medicine?

As an integrative physician, Dr. Chan does practice holistically. Due to the nature of insurance-based medicine, Dr. Chan only provides basic integrative holistic medical services. Once again, for those who aspire comprehensive integrative care, Dr. Chan recommends joining his Integrative Age Management Medicine practice at Rejenesis. Procedures such as medical acupuncture and intravenous nutrition are not routinely covered by most insurance plans in AZ and are therefore only offered at Rejenesis.

Is Dr. Chan affiliated with a hospital?

Dr. Chan currently utilizes hospitalists for all his inpatient needs.

How long is your average wait time, and how much time do you spend with patients?

As a medical practice that focuses on quality, in general our wait time and time spent with patients score better than the national average of 45-minutes wait and 8-minutes visit.

What is cardiometabolic-focused physical?

Heart attacks and strokes remain the leading cause of deaths in the nation. Yet 85% of cardiovascular diseases are preventable. In addition to the standard features of the physical which include EKG, spirometry, and urinalysis, cardiometabolic-focused physical involves the utilization of advanced laboratory and diagnostic studies to identify high risk asymptomatic patients and to target early disease detection and intervention with appropriate lifestyle and medical management in order to minimize risks for heart attacks and strokes. The use of specialized laboratories also allow patients to access to their respective health coaches and dieticians to further complement our in-house medical services.

Does insurance cover those advanced laboratory tests?

Most insurance companies do begin to recognize the value of preventive services. They understand that effective preventive measures against heart attacks and strokes can potentially save the system hundreds of thousands of dollars per patient, let alone the individual quality of life that preventive care may preserve and improve. Often times those that do not cover the services probably have more to do with the particular plans being selected rather than the specific insurance company policies. For specific laboratory billing questions please contact Sonora Quest at (800) 853-4288.

What if my insurance does not pay for those services, will I have to pay for them?

You might. A number of factors apply, including who your insurer is, what your coverage is, whether you are on Medicare and the laboratory’s policies. If your insurer does not pay, or if there is a balance between what the insurer pays and the laboratory’s charges for the service(s) provided, there is a chance the laboratory may seek payment from you. Most advanced laboratories have adopted financial hardship policies where they may look at your ability to pay on a patient-by-patient basis. And while Pineapple Health encourages its lab providers not to balance bill for uncovered expenses, we cannot guarantee they won’t. For specific laboratory billing questions, please contact Sonora Quest at (800) 853-4288.

Would my insurance premium be affected if my insurance does pay for those preventive services?

Those companies that pay generally suggest that they are in favor of preventive care. In fact, there is a trend that insurance companies may reward patients as they engage in healthier behavior by becoming more proactive in prevention.

May I address other medical issues during the physical?

Certainly. Many patients do choose to combine their physicals with other medical concerns such as prescription refills and/or acute care needs. Besides what are being offered during the physical, any additional problems identified and/or addressed will be billed accordingly.

What about other tests, services, procedures, therapies and medications that I would like to get but are not covered by my insurance plan?

Despite the fact that more insurance companies are embracing a preventive and holistic approach to healthcare, many still consider certain requested items as medically unnecessary or experimental, and thus they will become your responsibility.

Can I just call the office and have you order my labs, review my lab results, refill medications, and even just treat me over the phone?

Even though telemedicine may one day become the standard of care, current medical practice still require you to be seen at the office so we may appropriately bill your insurance.

Why do you have a general 6-month follow-up policy?

Most medications have side effects; many of which require regular laboratory follow-ups, and we do believe that monitoring our patients at least every 6 months would constitute good continuity of care.

How may I gain access to my medical records online?

Although certain EHR companies are granting patients some access to their records, this has not yet been a widely adopted practice in the industry. At this time, we will be glad to provide you with copies of your records upon request.

What is your consent policies?

In AZ, general consent is generally considered to be given when you schedule your appointment. Specific consent is only required when the procedure to be performed is not routine and has specific non-routine risks or potentially harmful side effects.

What is your financial policies?

Please refer to our Office Policies page and the Financial Policies found under the Patient Forms section on the Office and Patient Info page.

Who should I contact regarding general billing issues?

Please contact (602) 424-7967 (local) or (877) 845-2969 (long distance) for all billing issues.

How do you handle my complaints?

In general, positive and constructive feedback are helpful and are always welcome; however, negative and destructive comments that are in direct conflict with our Office Policies and/or Financial Policies simply suggest that our practice may not be the right one for you.

What if I decide to dispute my bills because I am not happy with the services?

Please understand that we will continue to do our best to provide quality and beyond-the-standard medical care to all our patients; however, our providers and staff are compensated based on time spent and services rendered and cannot necessarily guarantee desired outcomes. Disputes will be handled by our billing service with appropriate legal authorities and collection agencies