{"id":4828,"date":"2017-06-15T06:30:50","date_gmt":"2017-06-15T10:30:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/?p=4828"},"modified":"2021-04-19T17:55:50","modified_gmt":"2021-04-19T21:55:50","slug":"how-to-schedule-a-doctors-appointment-in-the-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/2017\/06\/how-to-schedule-a-doctors-appointment-in-the-us.html","title":{"rendered":"How to Schedule a Doctor\u2019s Appointment in the US"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/sick.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>You woke up with a sore throat, you can\u2019t seem to pull yourself out of bed and your head is pounding. Although you have a busy day of classes ahead of you, it\u2019s starting to happen: you\u2019re getting sick. Luckily, you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/?utm_source=isi_blog\">purchased health insurance coverage<\/a> before you even arrived in the US, which means you can visit the doctor and feel better in no time. However, visiting the doctor in a new country is easier said than done. If you\u2019re not sure how to schedule a doctor\u2019s appointment in the US, or how to even find a doctor, following these steps can help simplify the process:<\/p>\n\n\n\n  <div class=\"accordion\" id=\"accordionExample\">\n  <div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingOne\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseOne\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-controls=\"collapseOne\">\n          1. Know what plan you have.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n\n    <div id=\"collapseOne\" class=\"collapse show\" aria-labelledby=\"headingOne\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n       It might sound basic, but the very first step is to know what plan you have. Gather your insurance policy documents and insurance ID card as these will state the name of the insurance plan, the insurance carrier, and your insurance ID number. Insurance policy documents are often emailed, so if you didn\u2019t print your documents upon purchase or request to receive them through mail, checking your email inbox for this information is a good place to start.\n<div style=\"text-align:center\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/\" class=\"btn btn-primary\">Purchase your insurance plan here<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  <div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingTwo\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link collapsed\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseTwo\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"collapseTwo\">\n          2. Verify your coverage.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n    <div id=\"collapseTwo\" class=\"collapse\" aria-labelledby=\"headingTwo\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n        After you have gathered your plan documents, if you\u2019re not sure what\u2019s covered on your plan- now is the time to check. You can do this by calling the insurance company directly. When calling the insurance company make sure you reference your insurance ID number on your policy documents.\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  <div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingThree\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link collapsed\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseThree\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"collapseThree\">\n          3. Find a doctor.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n    <div id=\"collapseThree\" class=\"collapse\" aria-labelledby=\"headingThree\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n        <p>If your plan uses a PPO (Preferred Provider Organization) then you will have a list of \u201cin-network\u201d providers to choose from. This list will include hospitals, urgent care clinics, specialists and family doctors, and can typically be found by visiting the insurance company\u2019s website or your insurance agent\u2019s website directly.\n\nBefore you can find a doctor and make an appointment, you must first know what type of provider is appropriate for your situation. Inside the United States minor illnesses and injuries are taken care of by scheduling a doctor\u2019s appointment or by visiting a walk-in clinic. The emergency room is only utilized in instances of a true emergency, and will often include an additional fee.\n\nHMO (Health Maintenance Organization) plans require that you have one primary care physician that you visit. Unless it\u2019s an emergency, this physician will need to issue you a referral if additional treatment is needed.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/explained\/insurance-provider-networks.php\">Learn more about <strong>Insurance Provider Networks<\/strong> here <i class=\"fa fa-arrow-right\"><\/i> <\/a><\/p>\n\n<div class=\"alert alert-warning\"><strong>Additional tip:<\/strong> If you have purchased the Student Health plan or the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/travel-medical-insurance\/?utm_source=isi_blog\">Travel Medical plan<\/a> you can find the in-network provider list here. If you purchased the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/travel-medical-insurance\/\">Student Health Advantage plan<\/a>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/patriot-travel\/?utm_source=isi_blog\">Patriot Travel plan<\/a>, or the Global Medical plan you can find an in-network provider here.<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingFour\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link collapsed\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseFour\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"collapseFour\">\n          4. Schedule your appointment.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n    <div id=\"collapseFour\" class=\"collapse\" aria-labelledby=\"headingFour\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n        <p>The next step is to call the doctor directly and schedule your appointment. If your plan uses a PPO, when calling the provider, it\u2019s important to let them know what network your plan is a part of. For example, if you have the Student Health plan you will want to tell the office that your plan is a part of the First Health Provider Network. The name of the network your plan uses can be found within your plan documents or on your insurance ID card.<\/p>\n          <div class=\"alert alert-warning\"> <strong>Additional Tip:<\/strong> The name of your health insurance plan is not the same as the provider network. Keep in mind that you will need to know the specific network when scheduling your appointment.<\/div>\n        \n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingFive\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link collapsed\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseFive\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"collapseFive\">\n          5. Attend your appointment.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n    <div id=\"collapseFive\" class=\"collapse\" aria-labelledby=\"headingFive\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n       <p>Make sure you print and bring your insurance ID card with you to your doctor\u2019s appointment. When you arrive at the provider\u2019s office show them your insurance ID card when checking in.<\/p>\n\n<p>Depending on your plan, you may need to pre-authorize treatment with the insurance company in certain instances, like surgery. This can be done at the time of verifying your coverage, or you can ask your provider to pre-authorize coverage prior to the procedure during your visit.<\/p>\n        \n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  \n<div class=\"card\">\n    <div class=\"card-header\" id=\"headingSix\">\n      <h2 class=\"mb-0\">\n        <button class=\"btn btn-link collapsed\" type=\"button\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" data-target=\"#collapseSix\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"collapseSix\">\n          6. File a claim.\n        <\/button>\n      <\/h2>\n    <\/div>\n    <div id=\"collapseSix\" class=\"collapse\" aria-labelledby=\"headingSix\" data-parent=\"#accordionExample\">\n      <div class=\"card-body\">\n       <p>The claim process can vary from one health insurance plan to the next. However, you can find a good guide to help you through the process of submitting an insurance claim here.\n<\/p>\n        \n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  \n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<br><\/br><p>If you still don\u2019t have a plan, you can purchase any of our plans available to you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<table>\n<table class=\"table table-borderless\">\n  <thead>\n    <tr align=\"center\">\n    <th scope=\"col\">Student Secure<\/th>\n<th scope=\"col\">Student Health<\/th>\n<th scope=\"col\">Atlas Travel<\/th>\n<th scope=\"col\">Patriot Travel<\/th>\n    <\/tr>\n    <\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/espanol\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/student-health-logo.png\" alt=\"Student Health Insurance\" width=\"96\" height=\"96\"\/><\/td>\n    \n<td align=\"center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/espanol\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/student-health-advantage.png\" alt=\"Student Health Advantage\" width=\"96\" height=\"96\"\/><\/td>\n\n<td align=\"center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/espanol\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/travel-medical-2019_04_23-19_24_36-UTC-1.png\" alt=\"Student Health Insurance\" width=\"96\" height=\"96\"\/><\/td>\n    \n<td align=\"center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/espanol\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/patriot-travel-2019_04_23-19_24_36-UTC.png\" alt=\"Student Health Advantage\" width=\"96\" height=\"96\"\/><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/student-health-insurance\/?utm_source=isi_blog\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" style=\"align:center\">Learn more<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/student-health-advantage\/?utm_source=isi_blog\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" style=\"align:center\">Learn more<\/a>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/travel-medical-insurance\/?utm_source=isi_blog\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" style=\"align:center\">Learn more<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/patriot-travel\/?utm_source=isi_blog\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" style=\"align:center\">Learn more<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<br><p>If you have questions about how to choose an insurance plan that best suits your needs or would like to know more about your plan with us, feel free to contact us!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"text-align:center\">\n<a href=\u201chttps:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/contact\/?utm_source=isi_blog\u201d class=\"btn btn-primary\">Contact us<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Visiting the doctor in a new country is easier said than done. If you\u2019re not sure how to schedule a doctor\u2019s appointment in the US, or how to even find a doctor, following these steps can help simplify the process<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[103,104],"tags":[1518,1519,1270],"class_list":["post-4828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insurance-explained","category-international-students-in-the-usa","tag-how-to-make-a-doctor-appointment","tag-how-to-make-an-appointment-with-a-doctor","tag-how-to-schedule-a-doctors-appointment-in-the-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4828"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4828\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7619,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4828\/revisions\/7619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.internationalstudentinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}