Health Care Stewardship: Planning for emergencies

Most of us have journeyed through a home-improvement project. Maybe it was a small- to medium-sized, do-it-yourself effort. Or perhaps it was a major “sawdust-is-everywhere” project. For either, upfront planning is involved.

For the small DIY project, we create a list of materials and tools needed, make a few quick price comparisons, calculate an approximate total cost, and then it’s off to a local home-improvement store.

But for a large project, more is involved. We look at construction and design options, get recommendations for a contractor, pick two or three contractors to engage and obtain bids from, make adjustments to fit the budget, negotiate details and timing with the contractor, and finally sign a contract. Our goal in all this work, before the first nail is hammered, is to ensure a high-quality job at a fair price.

As important as home-improvement projects may be, they pale compared to health care choices’ long-term impact on our lives. High-quality care is a must; a fair price is critical to access such care over the long haul.

Yet many of us need to plan and prepare to make health care decisions. When navigating a significant medical issue, it’s easy to default to a provider or care plan with far less consideration or planning than we would for a home-improvement project.

It’s time to apply due diligence and upfront planning to caring for our bodies and health care needs!

What’s in your toolbox?

When there’s a plumbing leak, that home-improvement project you planned for down the road becomes an immediate necessity. Hopefully, you have a reliable plumber in your contact list that you trust to show up, do a good job, and charge a fair price.

Do you have the same plan for emergency medical situations? Fortunately, most Samaritan members live in areas with urgent care and hospital options for emergency situations. Here are some recommended action steps you can take now to be prepared for emergencies when they happen:

Have a conversation:

At your next primary care visit, discuss what medical situations should be handled through your primary care provider and which should be handled by alternate means. Ask for their input on recommended urgent care clinics and emergency room facilities.

Provider proximity

Identify two or three of the closest and most convenient options for both urgent care clinics and hospitals with emergency care facilities.

Research different providers

Schedule some personal time to contact providers to determine which one(s) your family will use in an emergency. As you do that, here are some things to consider:

• Urgent care clinics: Some urgent care clinics have the capability and expertise to perform multiple tests. Others may offer more basic but still excellent services by a nurse practitioner or someone similar. Each has its place, but be sure to factor in an essential awareness of their capabilities in deciding which one you want to use in an emergency.
• Emergency rooms: What recommendation did you receive from your primary care provider? Do you have an ongoing condition where a particular hospital’s expertise would be valuable in an emergency?
• Think about costs: There are often drastic differences in standard “chargemaster” rates between providers in a local area. Utilize the Healthcare Bluebook™ website, which is accessible from your Samaritan Dashboard, and identify which providers are “green” fair-priced providers. Call the providers and ask them about their cash-pay patient billing practices, their standard self-pay discounts, and what additional programs might be available for cash-pay patients.

Samaritan Ministries is also available to assist. Contact Samaritan’s Provider Relations team with questions by emailing provider.relations(at)samaritanministries.org.

Review and compare

As you compare the results of your findings, what are your observations? Which provider is the best choice for you and your family for both quality care and fair pricing?

Inform and prepare your family

Have this mindset: “If we have an emergency medical situation in the future, here’s our family plan …”

• “We call our primary care provider at the following number …”
• “We will normally go to this urgent care provider whose address and phone number is ...”
• “When we need to go to the ER, the hospital we want to go to is …, and their address is …”

For those in your family of driving age, do a family practice drive from your home to the provider(s) you have chosen.

Emergency room ‘paperwork’

When that emergency finally occurs, and you arrive in the ER, you or your family member will be presented with paperwork (digital or physical) to review and sign. One of the documents you will be asked to sign is a financial responsibility form. It will state that you, as the patient, accept full and ultimate financial responsibility for all billed services.

The fact that you need services in the ER means they, to a certain degree, have the upper hand already. And most of the financial responsibility documents are presented as if they are required and cannot be modified. Neither is true.

Before signing a financial responsibility document, it is recommended that you modify it by writing in (or requiring data entry of) the following statement before you sign:

“I consent and acknowledge responsibility of payment for appropriate treatment with reasonable charges up to two times the Medicare rate.”

Tip: Copy and paste this sentence into your phone, so you can access it to be used in an emergency situation!

Once you have inserted this statement and signed the document, take a photo of it with your phone and hold onto it. This type of modifier is not a slam dunk that ensures a fair price, but it will go a long way toward ensuring a fair price in the final outcome.

We don’t plan for emergencies, but, by following a few easy steps, we can be prepared and receive quality care for a fair price when the worst comes.