MINDFUL CARE  POLICIES 

Office Hours and emergencies:

• Our operating hours are Mondays through Fridays, 9 AM to 5 PM central time. We schedule for appointments on Mondays and Fridays only. We do not provide emergency services, crisis services, weekend and after-hours coverage. If you have a life-threatening emergency, please go to the nearest emergency room or call 911 or 988.

Insurance:

• Medical expenses are patient’s responsibility regardless of insurance coverage. While our billing department will verify your benefits with your insurance company as a courtesy, a copay or coinsurance info provided by us is not a guarantee of insurance coverage or payment. Patients are responsible for knowing the stipulations of their insurance policy. If for some reason your insurance company fails to pay for services rendered and/or you are not eligible at the time the services are rendered, the patient is still responsible for payment. You also agree to take full responsibility for the entire amount due to any and all services rendered that are not covered by your insurance company. You are responsible for notifying our office of any changes in insurance or demographics information, especially at the beginning of each year. You authorize your insurance plans to pay directly to Mindful Care, PLLC for the services provided.

Financial Responsibility:

• You are responsible for fully completing the Credit Card form for financial responsibility, even if you are on Medicare/Medicaid.

New Symptoms or events:

• Clinical Appointments are essential for addressing new symptoms or events. Please contact the office to schedule an appointment.

Medication refill policy:

• Mindful Care, PLLC does not keep medications at our office. You are accountable to inform the office when refills are needed. Refill approval may require up to three business days, so please be considerate and don't delay contacting us. All changes in medications are made during office visits, unless noted in the medication plan. We only provide mental health diagnoses and medication management options during an appointment. For those using a mail-order pharmacy, contact us fourteen (14) days before your medication supply is due to run out.

• Remember, all prescriptions require a follow-up appointment every 1 to 3 months at the discretion of the provider.

 
Cancellations and missed/no show appointments:

• Appointments are a valuable resource, and it should be understood that when scheduled, this time is set aside for you.  Missing appointments can disrupt your care and possibly lead to a relapse. Cancellations must occur through phone notification to the clinic’s reception desk (641-548-7177). If you no-call, no-show, cancel, or reschedule an appointment without a 24 business hour notice, you will be charged $40 for a follow-up appointment or $80 for an initial appointment.

• An appointment will be considered no-show or missed after 10 minutes, please be early. Missed appointments CANNOT be filed with insurance, you are solely responsible for this fee. After 3 missed (no-call, no-show) appointments, you will be discharged from services. A missed appointment without 24 business hour notification from the patient will be billed directly to your account and charged to the payment method provided. 

Scope of Services:

• At Mindful Care, PLLC we do not practice Forensic or Occupational Psychiatry. We do not get involved in worker’s compensation cases, divorce/child custody cases, fit for duty, disability evaluations, or other legal matters including testimony or reports in civil matters. Disability requests will not be processed. Prepayment is required for any paperwork and may take 5-10 business days.

• FMLA - There is a $100 charge for FMLA paperwork completed by your provider.

• All letters or forms for school, work, emotional support pet requests, etc. will incur a minimum fee of $20. and is at the providers discretion whether to complete it or not.

Medical records:

• If you need a copy of your medical record, you must give this office signed notification from the patient and 2 weeks’ notice. The charge for medical records is $20. There is no fee for office to office records requests.

Labs:

• We may need to order labs in some cases. Please note the cost of labs is not included in your visit charges. It is your responsibility to ask the lab about their cost. You may choose any lab of your choice.

• Controlled medication management may necessitate drug screenings.

• When labs are ordered for the patient, they must be completed within a 36-hour period.

Testifying in court:

• If legal actions occur in which your provider is subpoenaed to provide testimony (such as in custody cases) you will be responsible to provide the following even if the subpoena is sent from the opposing side of the case: a.) travel expenses b.) hourly or per diem fees based on our existing fees from the time the physician leaves the office until she returns. At least 50% of the anticipated cost will be expected prior to the court appearance.

Communications:

• We routinely use phone, email and text to communicate on scheduling, billing, refills and other matters related to our services. While we exercise caution, and encrypt electronic communication on our end, we expect the electronic communication is protected on your end (such as PIN for voicemail or password for email). If you do not feel comfortable with electronic communication, or if it isn’t protected on your end, please do not schedule an appointment with us.

Danger:

• In the event that your provider, in her clinical judgment believes you to be dangerous to yourself or to someone else, by signing this consent you authorize her to contact either the person listed as your emergency contact or someone else to aid through a crisis situation.

Right to withdraw:

• If a conflict arises for the client or the provider, either has the right to withdraw from the treatment. If the provider feels the need to withdraw from providing treatment, she will inform client and will try to provide appropriate referrals and a 30-day (non-controlled) prescription.

Returned checks:

• There is a $50 charge for any returned checks (if accepted).