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Special Information for Patients of A New Start Medical Center,
Inc. (ANSMC)

Is Dr. Hull a Psychiatrist? - Dr. Hull is a Board Certified Family Medicine specialist (Boarded by The American Board of Family Medicine in 1991, 1997, and 2004). He is also Board Certified in Clinical Lipidology by The American Board of Clinical Lipidology (2005). He completed his Certification as a Master Clinician in Psychopharmacology in 2005 (awarded by the Neuroscience Education Institute). He is thereby trained to provide medical psychiatric services to patients and has a great deal of experience in that area. He is not a board certified psychiatrist as he did not complete a residency program in psychiatry (his residency program was in Family Medicine); however, he has over twenty years of practice experience including extensive experience managing patients’ mental health issues with medications and has a passion for helping people achieve their goals of feeling “normal” and functioning well. If for any reason he does not feel competent or qualified to manage your mental health problem then he will appropriately refer you to a practicing psychiatrist (just as he would refer you to a subspecialist for your physical health needs if he felt inadequately qualified to manage such a problem).

Running on time: Your time is just as important as is Dr. Hull’s. He loathes running behind as much as you dislike being made to wait. He commits to make every effort possible to run on time; however, sometimes your acute needs may require more time then expected. Other times your needs may take less time than usual. So, his hope is that these balance out on a day-to-day basis and result in an on-time (or near on-time) experience for you.

Medication Refills: It is frustrating for you to run out of your medication and have to try to get it refilled. We will make every effort possible to work with you to make certain that you have enough refills on all of your prescription medication(s) managed through this office to last until your next scheduled visit. We recognize that for unforeseen reasons you may need a refill before your next appointment. We check our messages regularly, and will take care of appropriate refill requests as quickly as possible. If you run out of a medication because you missed an appointment then you will need to be seen to get your medication refilled.

Medication Prior Authorization: Unfortunately, what Dr. Hull feels to be the best medication treatment choice for you is not always congruent with what your insurance company is willing to cover. When you take a prescription to your pharmacy you may be told that your doctor needs to get approval for your medication from your insurance company. This is called a “prior authorization” or “PA.” These are very frustrating for you, and Dr. Hull tries to predict when this will happen and prepare you for it in advance. If a PA is needed then it will be taken care of as promptly as possible. Your insurance plan usually requires that you have failed (or had side effects) two other generic alternatives. If you have not previously tried the formulary alternatives then Dr. Hull will change your prescription to a covered medication (unless he feels that such a change is inappropriate). Usually a PA is can be handled promptly (within a day or two) but at times there may be a several day delay. Your insurance company, our office, or the pharmacy will inform you once the approval is completed.

Canceling (or failing to show for) an appointment: We understand that unexpected situations arise that may cause you to need to reschedule your appointment. If you need to cancel an appointment then please give at least a 24-hour business day notice. Failure to give adequate cancellation notice prevents another patient the opportunity to be seen for their concerns; therefore, a charge of $100 will be made for failure to cancel your appointment in a timely fashion. We do provide appointment reminders; however, at times the reminder system fails. We do expect you to remember and keep your appointment even if you don’t get a reminder. Failure to show up for a scheduled appointment will result in a $100 charge.

On Call: If you call the office after-hours you will be given the opportunity to leave a message (which will be addressed the next business day). Dr. Hull is available for truly urgent needs. If your needs are non-emergent then please just leave a message.

Phone Calls: Dr. Hull wants to maximize your quality of care, and he (or Ariella) will return your call as quickly as possible to resolve concerns related to your care at a previous office visit (e.g.: you may be having troubles with a prescribed medication). However, it is important that we don’t try to manage your ongoing care over the phone as that reduced the overall quality of your care. Therefore, if you are calling for medical advice then you will typically be asked to schedule an appointment.

Forms & Letters: If you have a form that needs to be completed (or a letter written) then you may need to schedule an appointment, during which the form will be prepared (and you will incur a standard office visit charge for that visit). If, in Dr. Hull’s judgment, filling out the form (or writing the letter) can be done without an appointment then you will be charged based upon the amount of time it takes for the form to be completed or the letter written. Uncomplicated forms and letters can usually be completed at a charge of about $35, but more involved or time-consuming needs may incur a charge of up to $100. Please fill out as much of the form as you possibly can (even in the physician section) as this will minimize your charge.

Referrals: Since Dr. Hull is not on any insurance plans he is not able to make referrals that require your insurance company to approve the referral. This is usually only an issue for patients with HMO plans or Tricare. If your plan requires a physician’s office to submit for a prior approval for a referral or a test then you will need to have your listed Primary Care Physician's (PCP) office make that referral. We will be happy to facilitate that process in any way possible.

Labs: If we can draw your blood tests in the office then they will be sent to the Health Diagnostic Laboratory (HDL). In that case your insurance is billed for your labs, but you will not be balanced billed (i.e.: you will have no out-of-pocket cost!). Otherwise, you will be given an order for your labs to take to the lab of your choice (or your primary care physician’s office).

Dr. Hull has been practicing medicine for over two decades, and continues to love patient care. A New Start Medical Center (and Dr. Hull) is committed to delivering the best medical care possible and we believe the aforementioned points will maximize your overall quality of care while maintaining a vibrant and positive atmosphere in the office. We appreciate your cooperation with these guidelines. If you have any questions about these policies then please ask any of the ANSMC staff for clarification or a more detailed explanation. It is our pleasure to serve you and we look forward to the opportunity to care for your needs. We thank you for entrusting Dr. Hull and the ANSMC staff with your care. It is our mission to earn the right to maintain that trust.

Respectfully,
Barry K. Hull, MD, FAAFP,
Medical Director

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