Billing, Records, and Referrals
Welcome to the AFP Billing page, serving both Amherst and Northampton locations. The button below enables patients to pay and can help set you up with a payment plan, if necessary.
If you have any billing-related questions, please call 413-835-0605 and ask for one of our billing reps.
Patient Information
The insurance landscape has changed over the last several years. Premiums and co-pays have increased significantly and high deductible plans have become more prevalent.
We are trying to maintain our current policy of billing insurance first, and then billing the patient once we have obtained the explanation of benefits. The number of patients who have high-deductible plans has increased to the point where soon we may no longer be able to continue in this manner.
Important Info From the Billing Office
High Deductible Plans
As of August 2017, all patients who have a high deductible plan will be required to pay $50 upfront for their appointments (with the exception of annual physicals and nurse visits). We have found that if patients wait for the bill to come it becomes a burden to pay a large bill all at once. By enacting this new policy and paying this portion of the bill at the time of the visit, we are hoping it will help our patients significantly offset the future cost.
Your statements are available to view on your patient portal and, as always, you may call our billing department to discuss this. You can pay with a card online or over the phone, with a check in the mail, or with card/cash/check in the office.
Thank you for your understanding.
Switching Insurance
Whenever your insurance changes, please notify us. If the information we have for you is incorrect it takes us MUCH longer for services you need-such as prior authorizations, referrals, and imaging- to go through because they can’t be approved with old information.
Insurance Plans We Accept
We accept Cigna, most Aetna, United Healthcare, Medicare, Tufts, HNE, HPHC and BCBS. We also accept Mass Health Standard and The Mass Health PCC Plan. Please call our office to check on other insurance policies.
Through the Health Connector:
- BMC Healthnet Plan
- Tufts Health Direct
- Health New England
- Blue Cross Blue Shield
MEDICAL RECORDS
Important New Patient Information
Patients:
Patients transferring out of our practice or to another medical provider’s office, please fill out the Authorization to Disclose Medical Information form. This will authorize us to send your records to another practice.
Patients needing our practice to obtain records from a previous provider, please fill out the Authorization for Release of Medical Information form. This will enable us to request records we need from another practice on your behalf.
Outside Organizations:
Primary Care offices requesting entire medical records for a patient that has transferred to your practice, please visit Chart Request and follow the prompts on the screen to place your medical records request. If we have received the Authorization to Disclose Medical Information form from the patient we will place the records in Chart Request for your office to download at no cost to you or the patient. If we do not have an authorization to disclose records please obtain one signed by the patient and upload it in Chart Request with your medical records request.
Life Insurance companies and Lawyer’s offices requesting medical records on one of our patients, please visit Chart Request and follow the prompts on the screen to place your medical records request. Please note a fee may apply.
Health Insurance companies and Outside Specialists offices requesting records related to prior authorization requests or referrals, etc. please call the office at 413-549-8400 or fax your request to 413-549-8409.
REFERRALS
Important Information Needed For Our Referral Coordinator
When a referral is needed to be processed for a patient, the following information is needed in order to do so:
1. Patient name and DOB
2. Provider full name and NPI number
3. Fax number to send the referral once obtained
4. The reason for the visit
5. The date of the appointment if one has been scheduled
6. The location of the specialty office if there is more than one
We will only contact the patient if there is a problem or we need more information. We do not call patients back after a referral is sent.
If you have any questions, please contact our Referral Coordinator at 413-549-8400 or referrals@doctorkate.net.