Dear Valued Patient:

Thank you for choosing Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates.

Before scheduling an appointment with our physicians, we ask that you contact your insurance company to verify our participation with your plan and review your benefits and eligibility.    

Please be advised that co-payments, items and/or services not covered by your insurance and any prior balances are your responsibility and are due at the time the services are rendered. 

Keep in mind that your insurance policy is a contract between you and your insurance company. If you did not follow your insurance plan’s terms, the insurance company may not pay for all or part of your care. 

We require that you present your insurance card at the initial appointment along with identification. We will require this process annually, as well. 

This is how the insurance billing process works:

• A claim will be sent to your insurance company. (We do file on secondary insurance). 
• After your insurance company receives the claim, the insurance company may contact you for additional information such as an accident report or to coordinate your benefits. Please respond to your insurance company’s questions as quickly as possible so that payment is not delayed. 
• It usually takes 30-45 days for your insurance company to pay your claim. After your insurance company has paid its portion, any remaining balance will be your responsibility. 
• You will receive an explanation of benefits (EOB) from your insurance carrier that advises you of any amount you may owe. The EOB should match your physician’s statement.  
• You will receive a statement for any balances remaining. Please pay promptly.   

If you do not have insurance or we do not currently contract with your insurance company, we have a self-pay policy. 

We do not bill liability insurance. You will be expected to follow our self-pay policy.

You will likely receive separate bills from other physicians for services or tests that they provided while you were in the hospital. Those bills are separate and apart from our physicians’ bills. If you have questions about those bills, please call the telephone number printed on those statements.
 
Our patient account representatives are available to help you with your billing questions or to provide more information. When calling, please have the patient's account number and date of birth available. Our Billing Department telephone number is (301) 774-9300.

We accept the following forms of payment: cash, check, Visa, MasterCard and Discover Card.

We understand that the financial issues related to health care can be confusing and difficult to understand and hope that this information helps explain some of the issues. 

Thank you again for choosing Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates for your orthopedic needs.

Visa, MasterCard, Discover Card, personal checks, cash and HSA cards.

We will file the claim for you, if we are under contract with your insurance company.

Your Social Security Number along with your personal information is used to verify your identity with your insurance company.

Please know that Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates takes your privacy very seriously:

• We do not sell patient information
• We do not provide patient information outside Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates for marketing purposes

Yes. Our physicians are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call our main office number, (410) 992-7800 of (301) 774-0500, for assistance anytime. Prescriptions are refilled during office hours only. 

We have four convenient office locations throughout Montgomery and Howard County. 

• Olney
• Columbia
• Silver Spring 
• Germantown

Yes.

Infants to seniors.

Yes, we are accepting new patients. In fact, in most cases, an individual with an acute injury will get an appointment to be seen within 24 to 48 hours of calling.

There is complementary parking available all around our buildings.

We must have a Consent form that is signed by either the patient or the patient’s legal guardian. Please complete and sign the Consent Form found under the forms section on our website. You may submit this form to our office via fax to (301) 774-8226. Please allow 30 days to receive your Medical Records. If you have any additional questions, contact our Medical Records Department at (301) 774-0500.

The physicians of Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates have privileges and perform surgery at the following facilities:

• Hickory Ridge Surgery Center (in the same building as our Columbia office) 
• Howard County General Hospital
• Montgomery General Hospital
  
• Holy Cross Germantown Hospital

Our physicians are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call our main office number, (410) 992-7800 or (310) 774-0500, for assistance anytime.

Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates requires a copy of a picture ID for each patient. This is used to confirm the patient’s identity and is kept in a secure protected environment for Potomac Valley Orthopaedic Associates use only. Potomac Valley Orhtopaedic Associates has security policies in place to ensure that your data is safe from exposure or release to other parties. Our staff is trained in patient privacy, committed to protecting your information and on the alert for suspicious activity.

Yes, a physician can see you. We require the patient’s auto insurance information and claim number along with personal health insurance information. We do not accept third-party billing.