Frequently Asked Questions
Membership
What is included in my membership?
Membership includes all of the services found under “our services” tab. You will receive preventive, chronic and acute care without any additional copays. You will have access to discounted labs and prescriptions. It also includes direct access to your doctor - even on evenings and weekends for urgent concerns.
Is there a sign up fee?
Yes. There is a fee of $50 for individuals and $75 for families. This fee covers our costs for getting all of the registration completed and obtaining and reviewing prior medical records.
Can patients of all ages be members?
Yes. A family medicine physician is trained to take care of all members of the family from newborn to any age.
Can I be a member if I am on Medicare?
Yes! We cannot bill Medicare, just like we do not bill other insurances. However, we can do orders and referrals for our Medicare patients. You can still use your Medicare benefits to pay for specialists, labs, xrays, other testing and medications.
If I have a chronic illness will membership cost more?
No. We are capable of handling many chronic illnesses. If your issues are beyond our scope of practice, we will work with you to arrange referrals to specialists and stay actively involved in coordinating your care.
What if I am healthy and rarely see a doctor?
That is great news!! However, we all know that proper maintenance goes a long way and that is true for your health as well. We can take the time to be proactive with you in this maintenance. Let’s review your family history and risk factors to prevent illness in the future. And if this happens to be the year you do get a sinus infection or strep runs through your house, it will only take an urgent care or ER visit or two to have easily made up the cost of your DPC membership.
Do I have to be a Christian or Catholic to be a member at Life & Family Medical?
Definitely not! We are serving our community and patients out of our own beliefs - regardless of yours. Everyone deserves compassionate, attentive care from their doctor. However, because of our beliefs, we will only provide care consistent with those beliefs.
How do I pay?
We prefer to arrange an automatic account withdrawl, but payment can be made through any major credit card.
Can I use my HSA/FSA to pay for my membership?
That one gets a little complicated. Since we aren’t experts on taxes, we recommend you talk with your HR department or the person that helps you with your taxes to discuss this. The government is also in the process of making these rules more clearly defined.
Can I sponsor someone that is interested in receiving care?
Yes! Contact us and we will help you get this arranged.
What if I want to cancel my membership?
While we certainly hope you are thrilled with the benefits you are receiving from your membership, we understand that at times it will be best to part ways. We ask that you give us 30 days notice prior to terminating your membership. If you do decide to re-enroll, please note that there will be a re-enrollment fee at that time. If you feel you need to cancel your membership due to economic hardship, please talk to us about the situation first. We will do our best to work with you through a tough time.
Where is Life & Family Medical located?
We are located at 2740 Happy Joe Drive, Suite 1, Bettendorf, IA 52722. We share the building with Women’s Choice Center. Please enter through the doors on the LEFT wing of the building, not in the center.
How do I sign up?
Yeah! If you are ready to join us, please click here to take you to the section to sign up.
Insurance
Do you take insurance?
No. We do not accept any form of insurance.
Do I still need insurance?
Yes. Although we can take care of the majority of your healthcare needs here we cannot do it all. Also, unexpected (expensive!) things happen in life like surgeries and injuries in accidents. We recommend you have a plan to cover major medical expenses. We can discuss some strategies for this with you.
Does this fulfill my obligation under the Affordable Care Act to have insurance?
No.
Can I still be a member if I don’t have insurance?
Yes! We do recommend major medical insurance to pair with your DPC coverage, but if this is not something you have right now we can still care for you. In fact, this may be an affordable way to help keep you well and avoid a major medical expense.
Do you share medical records with insurance companies or government agencies?
No. We would only do this if you wanted to get approval from your insurance for coverage for something and then only with your permission.
Services:
What if I need to see a specialist?
We know that sometimes medical issues will arise that are beyond the scope of family medicine. In these cases, we will work with you to arrange referrals to specialists and stay actively involved in coordinating your care. You can use your insurance to pay for the specialist, or in some cases, we may be able to assist arranging a better cash price for you for specialist services. We will be your advocate!
What happens if I am hospitalized?
This is one of those reasons we recommend insurance in addition to your DPC membership. Members will use their insurance to cover their hospitalization. Members will be cared for by the hospitalist and/or specialist during the hospitalization. However, as your doctor we will communicate with these hospital doctors and assist, as needed, in coordinating your care for when you return home.
What if I need care while traveling?
This can be a big bonus of DPC! If something comes up while you are out of the area, contact us. We can start with a phone call and even do a telemedicine visit to address the issue. Many times this will be all you need. It can save you a trip to urgent care or the ER in that unfamiliar place. If your doctor does feel you need to be seen, then at least you know it wasn’t a “waste” to make that urgent visit.
How do I contact my doctor?
We ask that you try to arrange your care, such as refills, appointment scheduling, and routine questions as much as possible during normal business hours. But we get it - sometimes things happen on evenings and weekends. Once you are a member, you will receive your doctors phone number and email address. You will be taught how to reach your doctor, after hours, with your urgent needs.
What if I need labs or x-rays?
We are in the process of negotiating major discounts on labs and x-ray services from providers in our community. You may even find it is cheaper to pay our cash price than use your insurance.
How do I get prescriptions?
We can send your prescriptions to your pharmacy of choice just like any other doctor. We also offer some generic medications at our clinic at prices just above wholesale. As the practice grows, we will be able to expand our medication offerings. We will not, however, be able to dispense any narcotics or controlled substances.
Do you do immunizations?
We do not stock immunizations at the clinic. However, we strongly support and expect our patients to follow all CDC immunization recommendations. There are several ways we can help arrange for you to receive immunizations depending on your insurance and even if you do not have insurance. Ask us and we will work to find a solution for you.
What do you NOT do?
We do not manage chronic pain or carry narcotics in our office. We do not do prenatal care or deliver babies. Also, because of our commitment to following Catholic religious directives, we do not provide contraception or referrals for abortions.
Donations:
How can I make a donation?
If you would like to make a donation to help support our underserved care, please click on the “contact us” button below and note this in the message. We will get back to you with further instructions on how to make your donation.