Our Policy

APPOINTMENTS

All appointments except for the Northside, Coeur d' Alene, and Sandpoint offices are scheduled through our main office in Spokane at 509-838-7711. Appointments for the Northside office can be made by calling 509-489-7504. Appointments for the Coeur d' Alene office can be made by calling 208-676-9913. For the Sandpoint office, call 208-263-2505 to schedule an appointment. When calling the main office for an appointment, please specify which location is most convenient for you. Our staff will make every effort to accommodate your needs. Please bear in mind, however, that all services are not available at all locations. In addition, not all of our physicians go to each of the satellite clinics.

In general, office visits are with scheduled appointments. Emergent care problems are best treated in a hospital emergency room with emergent care being available by calling 911.

In order for us to provide the best care possible during your appointment, please bring the following with you:

All of your current medications (or a current list)
Completed questionnaires that may have been sent to you before your visit
A list of any questions or concerns you have about your cardiovascular conditions or treatment

IMPORTANT: Due to isotope cost, patients who do not give 24 hours advance notice of cancellation for nuclear cardiology perfusion studies will be charged for the isotope.

TELEPHONE CALLS AND AFTER HOURS COVERAGE

In a true emergency, dial 9-1-1. If you need to speak with one of our physicians or a nurse, please call the office where your primary cardiologist is located. Patients followed by one of our Northside physicians should call 509-489-7504. Patients followed at our Coeur d' Alene office should call 208-676-9913. Patients followed at our Sandpoint office should call 208-263-2505. Patients followed at one of our satellite locations should call our main office at The Heart Institute, 509-838-7711, unless you are followed by one of our physicians at the Northside office or the Coeur d’Alene office, in which case call the respective number.

When calling after normal business hours, your call will be routed to a telephone receptionist. Please state the nature of your call to the receptionist, and your call will be routed to a physician or physician assistant. Although we will do our best to return your call as promptly as possible, please realize that our on-call physicians are often involved with in-hospital patient care including emergencies. A HCNW physician is on call 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

PRESCRIPTION REFILLS

To request a refill on a drug prescribed by one of our physicians, call your pharmacist 48 hours in advance with the information on the label. The pharmacist will contact our pharmacy line for approval of the refill.

INSURANCE

Many insurance plans require that you see a “participating provider” in order to receive your maximum plan benefit. HCNW has participating provider contracts with the following insurance plans:

Aetna Asuris NW Health Blue Cross of Idaho CareOregon ChoiceCare Network Community Health Plan of WA First Choice First Health Great-West Healthcare Group Health Healthcare Direct Healthcare Management Administration HealthSense 65 Indian Health Labor & Industries Medicaid Medicare Molina Healthcare	MultiPlan ODS Health Plans PHCO Premera Private Healthcare Systems Railroad Medicare Regence Blue Shield Spokane Community Care Sterling Option 1 Tricare Uniform Medical Plan United Healthcare USA Managed Care

If your insurance requires a referral for specialist services, please contact your Primary Care Physician (PCP) and request that a referral be faxed to our office at (509) 462-0570, prior to your appointment.

Please bring your insurance plan card with you when you come for your appointment. This will assist our staff in determining if your insurance carrier requires pre-authorization for any procedures that might be scheduled.

Our staff will instruct you in the proper billing procedures for your particular insurance carrier, to the best of their ability.

If you sign an “assignment of benefits” and provide us with your insurance identification, showing ID numbers and a billing address, we will submit an itemized bill for services to your third party carrier. If your third party carrier does not respond with payment or a denial of payment within 60 days of submission, or your carrier responds with notice of co-pay, you will be held responsible for payment of your account balance.

If you receive a statement and believe that it was sent in error, or you would like to set up payment arrangements on the outstanding balance, please contact our Billing Office at (509) 456-5924.

MEDICAL RECORDS

HCNW abides by The Uniform Health Care Information Act, which became effective in Washington State on July 28, 1991, and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which became effective April 14, 2003. Provisions of these acts include how your medical information may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information.

To obtain a copy of medical records, the patient or legally authorized representative must sign a records release form. Click here to download the HCNW Authorization to Use or Disclose Health Care Information form. Complete the form and mail or fax it to the HCNW location where you were treated. Office addresses and fax numbers are listed at the top of the form. You may also call our Main Office at 509-838-7711 and ask for the Medical Records Dept. to obtain a records release form.
Health care providers have 15 working days to make the information available.
An authorization to release records is valid for 90 days after signing with the exception of providing information to third-party payors.
Patients have the right to personally inspect or obtain a copy of his or her medical record. Appointments to review medical records are scheduled between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM, Monday through Friday. Please call the Medical Records Dept. at our Main Office (509-838-7711) at least two days in advance should you wish to review your medical record.
When possible, HCNW prefers to send medical records via facsimile rather than hand carry or mailing the records. There is no charge to the patient for copies of medical records for the first 25 pages of records originating from HCNW. A reasonable fee may be charged for records requested under certain circumstances. The law states that records do not have to be copied until the copying fee is paid.
Due to increasing administrative costs, a $10 fee is charged to complete disability form(s). Please be prepared to pay at the time of the request. Multiple forms can be submitted at the same time for the $10 fee.

PRIVACY OF HEALTH INFORMATION

We keep a record of the health care services we provide you. You may ask to see and copy that record. You may also ask to correct that record. We will not disclose your record to others unless you direct us to do so or unless the law authorizes or compels us to do so. You may see your record or get more information about it by contacting our Privacy Officer.

Click here to download Heart Clinics Northwest Notice of Privacy Practices. If you have questions about this notice, please contact our Privacy Officer during business hours:

Heart Clinics Northwest, Privacy Officer
122 W 7th Avenue, Suite 310
Spokane, WA 99204
Phone: 509-838-7711