Contact

As a patient, you should call your insurance company to verify eligibility, benefit type, co-payment amount, deductibles, and referral requirements at least 3 – 5 days prior to your appointment.

Many insurance companies require you to obtain an authorization from your primary care physician prior to your appointment. You must contact your primary care physician’s office at least 3 days prior to your visit at TBJ to ensure they have forwarded your authorization.

If you arrive for your appointment without an authorization, we may be required to reschedule your appointment.

Tulsa Bone & Joint processes authorizations for all surgeries and some diagnostic services, such as MRI. Each insurance company has its own rules regarding authorizing outside services. Please contact your insurance company, your primary care physician (PCP), or your workers’ compensation adjuster to obtain authorization for testing or therapy. Once authorization is obtained, please call to schedule your test.

If you have any questions regarding your test or equipment, call (918) 392-1400, press “0,” and ask the operator to connect you to the proper department.

The nature of our practice is to give every patient the utmost in comprehensive care and service. At times your physician may need to spend a little more time with a patient than anticipated to fully evaluate the patient and offer the most comprehensive course of treatment.

Additionally, because our physicians provide on-call service at St. John Medical Center, they may be called out for emergency surgery during clinic hours. For these reasons, please excuse any delays you may experience in wait time for your appointment. If necessary, we will reschedule your appointment.

We are proud of the outstanding professional level of our physicians, and we appreciate your patience should our physicians’ clinics run late. We will give you the same careful attention as soon as possible.

A parent or legal guardian must accompany new patients under the age of 18 at their initial visit. State law governs exception to this policy. Please call the office in advance of visit, if you have questions or require an exception.

Please listen carefully to the instructions given to you by your physician and their assistants. They will give you information regarding your pre-operative testing and admission for surgery. If you have any additional questions regarding your surgery, contact your physician’s office.

We verify insurance coverage and obtain authorization for surgeries where required by the insurance company. You will be contacted prior to surgery if it is determined you owe a copay or coinsurance. Any outstanding balance will need to be paid prior to the date of surgery, or the surgery may need to be rescheduled.

Some surgeons work in teams with physician assistants or advanced registered nurse practitioners. Because these teams work together every day, they are highly specialized and experienced in the procedures they perform. This specialization may result in a better patient outcome.

All surgery charges will be billed to your insurance carrier. However, your insurance may not cover the surgical assist fees. Please understand that should your insurance deny payment on a surgical assist, you will be responsible for the unpaid balance.

Our regular hours of operation are Monday – Friday, 8 am – 4:30 pm. Our Orthopedic Urgent Care Clinic is open 11 am – 7:00 pm Monday through Friday and 8 am – Noon on Saturday.

In case of a non-life threatening medical emergency outside of these hours, an established patient may call (918) 392-1400 and speak with our answering service. The physician on call will be notified as appropriate.

Copies of medical records may be obtained by calling our main number at (918) 392-1400.

Processing requests takes approximately 10 working days. Please note there is a fee for this service. Download the Release of Medical Records or you can ask for it at the front desk at any Tulsa Bone & Joint location. You may fax this medical release to (918) 392-1401 or return it to the front desk at any Tulsa Bone & Joint.

Our physicians participate in most of the health plans in the area. Please check your provider manual if you are unsure about our participation. We also accept Medicare and workers’ compensation, but we do not accept third party liabilities, i.e. car accidents.

We will provide you with care that adheres to your insurance guidelines, however, we must have your help. It is impossible to keep track of all individual insurance plan requirements. We depend on YOU to know your coverage requirements. We will file your claims for you and assist you in obtaining maximum reimbursements, but ultimately, you are responsible for your bill.

For insurance plans that require referrals, please have your referring physician fax the following to 918-392-1401:

• Medical records pertaining to your condition
• Insurance authorization (if prior authorization required by your insurance company)
• Demographics and insurance information (front and back of your insurance card)

The required authorization must be received prior to scheduling your appointment.

Please have your insurance card(s) with you at each visit. You are responsible for notifying us of any change in your coverage at EACH visit. Please advise the receptionist of any address or telephone number changes.

Insurance is considered a method of assisting you with medical expenses and is not a substitute for payment. Your insurance card must be provided to avoid treating you as a cash patient. Without an insurance card, you may be responsible to pay for each visit.

It is our policy, with few exceptions, to bill your insurance company for you. However, you are responsible for any unmet deductibles, co-insurance, or non-covered benefits that may occur. If payment is not received from your insurance within 60 days, a statement may be sent to you.

Co-payments are due at the time of service for each visit in order to avoid rescheduling your appointment. The front desk personnel will collect co-pays at the time of registration prior to seeing the physician. We accept cash, check, Visa, MasterCard, and Discover for the co-payment or any amount not covered by your insurance; American Express payments are accepted via electronic tablet.

Tulsa Bone & Joint Associates has a workers’ compensation department to assist you, your employer, case manager, and adjuster during the care for your work comp injury. If you have any questions regarding workers’ comp, please call our main number at (918) 392-1403.

Kempton Premier Provider

Tulsa Bone & Joint is a participant of the KPPFree™ program.

The Kempton Premier Providers® who participate in this program recognize the value the free market brings to healthcare, and want to support self-funded employers in their communities.

Tulsa Bone & Joint extends our high value medical services at our best price through KPPFree™. We believe in helping our local community employers offer superior benefits at a reasonable cost.  Our patients who are members of KPPFree™ receive the same quality care with reduced or eliminated out-of-pocket costs.

The Zero Card

Tulsa Bone & Joint is a participant of The Zero Card program. The Zero Card is a supplemental employee benefit program that empowers you and your health plan by providing more choice and dramatically lowering costs.

The company offers access to bundled case-rates that save 45% on average, while simultaneously giving employees more choice of providers. The employers who utilize The Zero Card have 100% transparent case-rates, so they know exactly what they are paying and saving. When plan members use The Zero Card benefit, they get access to the care they need for $0.

Evolution

Tulsa Bone and Joint is a member of Evolution’s Elite Provider Program. Evolution Providers meet high quality standards and provide discounts to both the plan and members. Evolution is an innovative employee benefit designed to save members, employers, and providers time and money.

The Evolution program features a wide variety of elite providers specifically designed to meet each employers unique needs. Services provided through Evolution include discounted testing, medical equipment, lab work, procedures/surgeries, and many others. Through Evolution’s easy to use S.A.V.E. program, medical guides assist members in finding an Evolution Elite Provider, offering transparent pricing, and providing options with no out-of-pocket costs.