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FAQ
1. Is TārāMD a medical practice?
Yes, we are a medical practice but may be different compared to your previous medical experiences. TārāMD on the Upper East Side was founded by a double board-certified female physician. Dr. Suzanne Fenske is trained in gynecology and minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery through one of the leading academic institutions, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, as well as in integrative medicine through the University of Arizona School of Medicine. TārāMD offers what we consider the best of healthcare - an expert, truly integrated personalized approach combining traditional, functional and integrative medicine. Some people do need medications and surgery and we certainly provide that when indicated.
2. What is integrative medicine?
As Dr. David Rakel has so beautifully said, “ Integrative medicine is a shift in medicine toward recognizing the benefits of combining the external, physical and technological successes of curing with the internal, nonphysical exploration of healing.” Simply put, Integrative medicine places the patient at the center, relies on a trustworthy partnership between the patient and physician, acknowledges the importance of physical and emotional health, and utilizes all the tools including natural approaches as well as medications and surgery. It promotes true healing and health rather than symptom management.
3. What hospital are you affiliated with?
We are proud of our affiliation with Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, but we are still a private practice.
4. Do you do obstetrics/deliveries?
No, we do not provide prenatal care or perform deliveries. We do offer expert preconception assessments and counseling and focus on postpartum care and recovery.
5. Do you accept insurance?
Please see insurance details in our ”insurance” section.
6. What is the cost of visits?
We believe in full transparency of costs. Please see our “pricing” section for common visit types and fees.
7. How do I schedule an appointment?
New patients are encouraged to call or email us for an appointment. Established TārāMD patients can contact us or self-schedule through their Athena Health patient portal.
8. What is your cancellation policy?
Out of respect for our patients’ and practitioners’ time, we ask for a full 24-hour cancellation notice. Visits canceled or rescheduled less than 24 hours in advance will be subject to a $150 cancellation fee.
Insurance
We do not accept (most) insurance plans.
Many people are used to their provider billing insurance directly and understandably have questions about our model. After practicing within the insurance system for almost 2 decades, we have made the difficult decision to leave it. We do help you navigate your reimbursement for our visits (see below).
Did you know that the average length of time spent with a physician in a regular visit is 10 min, and that includes both the patient and doctor communication and exam?
This is because insurance companies are more concerned about managing their costs - they dictate what services are covered and what the coverage will be. This has led to a healthcare system that relies on a quick, assembly-line type of medicine where physicians are seeing often over 30, even 40 patients a day. We believe that healthcare is not about high volume, brief encounters - healing requires attention, time, and the sharing of expertise and advice that in most instances cannot happen in a 10-minute time frame. It may be enough time to do a pap smear, but when is the last time your annual GYN exam meant a discussion of how to improve your sleep, or proactively reduce your breast cancer risk using food and lifestyle choices? We believe we can provide you with more healthcare (including the care in healthcare!) through our system, saving healthcare costs in the end.
We are in-network with one specific UMR/UHC plan. We participate on an in-network basis with only one plan, a United Healthcare Top Tier plan specific to Mount Sinai employees in New York, our academic and hospital “home base.” We are NOT in-network providers for other UHC plans.
We help you navigate insurance reimbursement.
Patients with out-of-network coverage usually are reimbursed up to 70-80% of the cost of the visit once the deductible has been met. We help you with this process:
- Once you pay for the visit, we will provide you with a receipt as well as a “superbill” with correct CPT and diagnosis codes which can be submitted by you to your insurance company for potential reimbursement to you.
- As a courtesy to our patients, we offer this submission on your behalf at no cost to you - please let us know at the time of your visit if this is a service you would like.
- We cannot guarantee that you will be reimbursed, as each insurance plan is unique. We encourage you to contact your plan to understand your coverage and reimbursement.
- You cannot submit for reimbursement if you are covered under Medicare/Medicaid. Our providers have opted out of Medicare.
- For lab testing and imaging referrals, we try to use in-network providers if preferred by our patients to limit cost. For labs, we typically utilize either Labcorp or Quest, but it is your responsibility to check which one is the preferred lab provider for your insurance. For imaging, we work with a number of leading radiology offices in New York - please also verify which one accepts your insurance if you desire to stay in-network.
- Some advanced testing options such as functional hormonal testing including the DUTCH or ZRT test, or some genetic tests, are not covered by insurance. We only recommend these tests if they are indicated for YOU, not routinely, and will discuss the associated cost with you. You do not need to agree to the test and we will work with standard testing options to the best of our ability.
- Through the CARES act of March 2020, some insurers are waiving the deductible requirement even for high-deductible plans for telehealth visits, which means you may get reimbursed even without satisfying the deductible. Please check with your insurer.
Please call our office at (212) 988-0562. or email us at hello@taramd.com if you have additional questions.
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Pricing
We believe in cost transparency in our practice. The costs listed below apply to general visit types. Procedures may incur other fees, which are established and would be discussed with you openly and clearly prior to the procedure or prior to scheduling a procedure visit. Lab costs are not included but we do not charge for the collection of your blood test or urine test in our office. Patients previously seen by Dr. Fenske are considered established patients from the perspective of the fee schedule. Please contact us with any pricing question not addressed in the list below.
Cancellation policy
Out of respect for our patients’ and practitioners’ time, we ask for a full 24-hour cancellation notice. Visits canceled or rescheduled less than 24 hours in advance will be subject to a $150 cancellation fee.
Testing costs
We do not charge for blood draws or urine collection. We strive to send the tests to the in-network lab based on insurance coverage, usually Quest or Labcorp. It is the patient’s responsibility to find out which lab is the preferred lab provider on their plan. Some advanced testing options such as functional hormonal testing including the DUTCH or ZRT test, or some genetic tests, are not covered by insurance. We only recommend these tests if they are indicated for YOU, not routinely, and will discuss the associated cost with you. You do not need to agree to the test and we will work with standard testing options to the best of our ability.
Supplement costs
As a convenience to our patients, we have partnered with Fullscript, a virtual supplement dispensary of medical-grade supplements manufactured by vetted companies which meet higher standards for safety and quality. We are able to provide our patient community a discount of 15% from what you would pay for the same products as a retail customer. Supplements are not covered by insurance, but FSA/HSA funds may be used when purchasing through Fullscript. You are under no obligation to purchase these products from Fullscript and may buy them elsewhere, being certain that this decision will in no way affect the quality of care you receive from us. We do not have commercial or financial agreements with any supplement manufacturers.
Become a New Patient
To schedule a New Patient appointment, please email us at hello@taramd.com with the request and your contact information or call us at (212) 988-0562. Patients previously seen by Dr. Fenske are considered NEW patients for scheduling purposes but are considered established patients from a billing perspective. If you have had a visit with TārāMD and would like to schedule another appointment or follow-up, please either contact us or use the self-scheduling feature through your patient portal.
Patient Portal
To access your patient portal, please click the link below. If you are a patient of TārāMD but have not established your portal account, please contact us to obtain the sign-up link.