· Fees
· Records
When you make an appointment with me you are paying for
the combination of my time, effort and clinical expertise. Therefore, the cost
of an initial evaluation will vary somewhat from patient to patient. However,
in all cases, they are comparable to those of other adult psychiatrists in the
Santa Monica Area and the standard fee-for-service rates charged at the UCLA
psychiatry clinics. In order to help my patients
control unnecessary costs, my stated rates include a 10% discount on ancillary
services, for maintaining a valid credit card on file (i.e. rates are slightly
higher when no valid credit card is kept on file). To get a better
understanding of my fees please contact me directly at 310-744-5102. I charge a
reasonable fee for spending the time necessary to provide the highest quality
medical service. Providing you with this level of care make it impossible for
me to accept consignment payments from any insurance plans. However, if you
have a PPO type insurance plan I can provide you with
a "superbill" to submit to your insurance company for reimbursement
of out-of-network services. I would recommend speaking with your insurance
company to verify your specific benefits and level of reimbursement for
behavioral health services, however, rarely do they fully cover the cost of the
care you will receive. Please keep in mind that irrespective of your insurance
benefits, you are responsible for full payment at the time of service. For your
convenience, I accept credit cards (Master Card, Visa, American Express and
Discover), checks or cash as payment. A $75 fee will be charged for each
returned ("bounced") check.
Appointments: Medication management (pharmacotherapy) visits are scheduled
for 15-30 minute appointments, depending upon your
needs. Ongoing psychotherapy sessions are scheduled weekly and last 45 to 50
minutes. Typically, I begin with 30-minute pharmacotherapy appointments, then
transition to shorter appointments when there are no significant active issues and the medication or dose has not been changed for
some time. The appointment time is reserved for you so
it is important that you are on time. If you are late, your appointment may
still conclude at the end of your scheduled appointment time. If significantly
late, you may have to reschedule your appointment and will be charged my usual
fees.
Cancellations: 48-Hour Cancellation Policy. The scheduled appointment time is
reserved specifically for you and this is your time.
Therefore, if you are unable to keep an appointment, please be sure to cancel
at least 48 hours in advance or you will be charged my usual fee for that
session. Please be aware that insurance companies generally do not reimburse for
a cancelled session. Appointments canceled with less than 48 hours notice will be billed at 50% of the session cost,
cancellations with less than 24 hour notice will incur
the full session cost.
Record Keeping
I maintain a clinical chart for each patient, as required
by the standards of my profession. Information in the chart includes a
description of your condition, diagnosis, treatment and progress. An entry is
made for each appointment, as well as for phone communications. I keep records
of any consent, information release, assessment, insurance documents, outside
treatment/testing, and other records completed or collected during
the course of treatment. Clinical records are kept in a locked cabinet
and/or as password-protected files. Information contained in this record will
not be released without your written consent except in the circumstances
outlined below and as explained in the Notice of Privacy Practices.
Confidentiality
Information shared between patient and provider is
strictly confidential, with certain exceptions required by law. You hold the
privilege of deciding with whom I may disclose information about evaluation and
treatment. If you would like for me to share information with other providers,
therapists, school officials, or other persons, please fill out an
Authorization for Release of Information for each person/entity with whom you
would like me to communicate.
I will release information only with your written
permission with the following exceptions:
Most insurance companies require information about your
diagnosis, the type of service provided, the date of the session, and fees
(Click the "Fees" tab above for more information about the cost of
evaluation and treatment). I will include this information on your statement,
at your request. In some cases, insurance companies require that the physician
send information about the patient's diagnosis and treatment plan, progress
reports, and other records. Almost all insurance companies state that they will
keep this information confidential, but I cannot assure this. For example, some
may share the information they receive with a national medical information data
bank for the purposes of deciding eligibility for future life, disability,
health, and other insurance. Before I send any information to an insurance
company, I will talk with you first, discuss the information to be provided,
and obtain your written permission to do so. You have a choice about whether to
release medical information requested by an insurance carrier, but if you
refuse to have information released, most insurance programs will not reimburse
for services.
Prescriptions
It is my policy to only write and refill prescriptions for
psychotropic medications when you are seen in person at a scheduled
appointment. In emergency cases, I may authorize medication refills by phone or
fax to your pharmacy, but generally I like to see my patients for regular
appointments. If you need a prescription called in before your next regular
appointment, please give me at least 48 hours to process your request. This
will prevent any interruption in your medication use. It is best to contact your
pharmacy directly when you need a medication refill, and they will fax me a
refill request form.
Phone Calls
If you need to reach me between appointments, please call
310-744-5102 and leave a message with your telephone number, even if you think
I have it, and some times
when you may be reached. Phone consultations lasting over 5 minutes are subject
to a fee. Please consider the need for a more immediate appointment if a longer
conversation is necessary.
E-mail Correspondence
You are welcome to send non-urgent information to me by
e-mail, but I cannot guarantee the confidentiality or security of e-mail
correspondence (for example, from hackers) despite my use of password-protected
electronic mail.
SMS Messaging (text messaging)
"Texting" is not HIPPA compliant (1) Text
messaging it is NOT encrypted, (2) Text messaging cannot show full audit trails
of when the messages are received and read, and (3) Text messaging cannot
ensure priority delivery; a message about a patient in critical condition could
be in queue behind a teenager's "haha" text
message. Therefore, text messaging is not appropriate for communications
related to your clinical information, including, but not limited to your
diagnosis, treatment plans, medications, lab results, side effects or symptoms,
etc.
If you consent to receive SMS from Eric Wexler MD, PhD you
agree to receive all types of message related to scheduling
or coordinating clinical care. If you
wish to stop receiving SMS from us then Reply STOP to
opt-out; Reply HELP for support; Message & data rates may apply; Messaging
frequency may vary. Visit above on this page for more information about our
privacy policy and terms and conditions or for even more information, a more extensive
discussion of policies can be downloaded at https://www.ericwexlermd.com/assets/MB_PDFs/NewPatientIntakeMinimal.pdf
Urgent or Emergency Issues
I will do my best to respond to phone calls as soon as
possible; however, I do not provide urgent, crisis or emergency services. In
the event of an urgent need outside of an appointment, please contact the local
emergency room, crisis intervention services, or call 911. On the occasions
that I am away from my practice, the message on my voicemail will direct you to
the doctor providing coverage for my practice.
Ending Treatment
You may withdraw from treatment at any time. I recommend
that we discuss a plan to terminate care before doing so, so that we have the opportunity to discuss further treatment
recommendations, any potential risks for ending treatment at that time, and
referral options if they are needed.
If you have any questions about these policies or any of
the information above, I would be happy to discuss them with you in further
detail. Thank you.
Eric Wexler MD, PhD -- 2730 Wilshire
Blvd. Suite 325. -- Santa Monica CA, 90403 -- TEL: 310-744-5102 -- FAX:
310-919-1919 -- info@ericwexlermd.com