Serving the Lowcountry and Coastal Empire of Georgia and South Carolina.

Office Policies

You have more important things to do than sitting around endlessly in a waiting room, scratching your head trying to decipher a confusing bill statement, or being surprised by an unexpected fee. SouthCoast Health's doctors don't want anything getting in the way of providing you with timely, top quality, thorough, and comprehensive care. SouthCoast Health has adopted the following policies in order to create the best possible environment for your journey to Total Wellness for Life.

Appointments

Most SouthCoast Health practice areas schedule appointments for Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with some practice areas offering enhanced evening and weekend hours. We know you're busy, so we work hard to keep your wait time to a minimum. New patients, please arrive 30 minutes prior to your first appointment in order to complete the initial new patient paperwork. You can save yourself some time by completing your patient forms prior to your arrival.

Medications

In order to provide you with the best quality and safest care, your doctor needs to know what medicines you are taking. Please update your doctor on your medications at each visit. Make and bring along a list of all medications you are presently taking, including prescription, over-the-counter, and natural and alternative medications. Or, if you prefer, put all the medications in a plastic bag and bring them along to show to your doctor.

Canceling Appointments

We understand that your busy life may sometimes make it impossible for you to keep your scheduled appointment. If you are unable to keep an appointment, please call at least 24 hours in advance to reschedule and to avoid a no-show fee. This will allow us the opportunity to schedule another SouthCoast patient for the doctor's valuable time, and to reschedule you promptly for a new appointment.

Rarely, we may need to cancel your scheduled appointment, sometimes, in the case of medical emergencies, with little advance notice. If this happens, we will reschedule you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding.

No Show Policy

If you miss your appointment, you may be charged a $50.00 fee for a missed appointment, a $75.00 fee for a missed pediatric appointment, a $100.00 fee for a missed physical, or a $200 fee for a missed procedure or surgery. This fee will need to be paid prior to rescheduling. This fee cannot be billed to insurance.

As permitted by state law, you may be discharged as a patient following three (3) no-shows in a one-year period (365 days).

Insurance Claims and Billing

SouthCoast Health participates with most major insurance carriers. See our participating health plans to verify whether we accept your health insurance plan. Please bring all of your medical insurance cards with you to each visit.

We are happy to file insurance claims on your behalf for those insurers with which we participate, and to help you determine what benefits your insurer provides. It is, however, ultimately your responsibility to know your insurer's benefits and to pay any costs not covered by your insurer.

If you have any questions about insurance coverage or billing, please call our business office at 912.691.3530. We'll be happy to help!

Workers' Compensation

If you will be receiving treatment under workers' compensation, please secure your employer's verification of coverage prior to treatment.

Financial Responsibility and Fees

We ask that you pay at the time of service for all services that are not covered by your insurer or that are determined to be your responsibility, including co-payments. For your convenience, we accept cash, check, MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express. We charge a service fee for co-payments not paid on the day of service. We will send you monthly statements with your personal balance, the amount you owe after insurance companies have processed the claim.

Our fees are comparable to the customary charges for this area. If you have any questions about insurance, billing, or our fees, please call our business office at 912.691.3530. We'll be happy to help!

Emergencies and After Hours

If you have a life threatening medical emergency, please call 911 immediately or go to the nearest emergency room. For any other urgent matters that arise after hours or on weekends, please call your physician's office. The answering service will contact the physician on call.

Prescription Refill Authorization

Time to refill your prescription? Log in to the patient portal to request a refill. You can also contact your pharmacy to request a refill on your behalf during normal business hours.

Please allow 48 hours for us to complete the request.

If your prescription refills have expired, this is a good time to schedule your next appointment with your doctor.

Medical Records

We carefully protect the confidentiality of your medical records. We will not release any of your information to anyone other than your physicians without your consent. If you need to request a copy of your medical records, click here for more information on the three methods to request your records.

Advance Directives and Living Wills

Advanced directives and living wills are an excellent way for you to clarify and communicate your healthcare goals and values. If you have an advanced directive or living will, please make sure to share a copy and any subsequent updates with your physician. Your priorities and choices are important to us, so please do let us know what they are.

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