Life Extension Center

789 E. Lancaster Avenue, Suite 230
Villanova, Pennsylvania 19085
610.616.2500

Office Policies

APPOINTMENTS

Due to the nature of our practice, there may be a lengthy wait for a new patient appointment with Dr. Zabrecky. In our effort to accommodate our patients, a new patient may be given an earlier appointment with Dr. Wolinsky. This appointment will allow a new patient to begin initial contact with a health care provider in our office. A history, physical exam, blood testing or other laboratory testing will be taken at this appointment. If records are reviewed in advance by our office, therapy may be initiated during this first appointment based on these medical records (please see Medical Records). A new patient is always given a follow-up appointment with Dr. Zabrecky two to three weeks later to allow for all testing to return for his review (please see Follow-Up Appointments). New patients will be charged for laboratory testing and supplements upon the completion of the first visit.

TELEPHONE CONSULTATIONS

Telephone consultations are utilized in place of follow-up office visits or to provide an initial assessment of new patients who live long distances from our office in Connecticut.

If you are a new patient and are planning to schedule a telephone consultation with Dr. Zabrecky or Dr. Wolinsky, the following is required for your appointment:

  1. All medical records pertinent to the patient's diagnosis or disorder are required to be sent to our offices via fax or mail. An office staff member will instruct a patient on how to obtain your medical records from your other physicians if you do not have copies on hand.
  2. The new patient letter must be read thoroughly, signed and sent or faxed back to our offices with the patient's medical records.
  3. Fees for a new patient telephone consultation are billed at the rate of $450.00 per hour. A prepayment is required for all new patient Telephone Consultations. An Easy Pay Consent form is to be filled out, signed and returned to our office with a patient's medical records and signed new patient letter.

When the above items are received from the patient, an office staff member will telephone the prospective patient to schedule the telephone consultation date and time that the physician will call.

After a new patient telephone consultation, a patient will be given recommendations and referrals, or this information will be reviewed during a follow-up appointment. A patient may be requested to make a follow-up appointment to come to the Ridgefield office, see one of our associated physicians or attend a treatment session at another medical facility. These options are discussed with the patient during the initial contact and during the telephone consult. All patients are given specific therapies conjunctive to their specific case and diagnosis. Treatment may not be recommended to start before a follow-up appointment. A patient's credit card is charged after the appointment date, not before.

FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENTS

A report of findings and their significance will be given at a subsequent visit. This second visit will be scheduled for two to three weeks after your initial visit with one of our health care providers. This will allow sufficient time for all laboratory testing to be completed and returned to our office for your follow-up visit. Consultation fees for follow-up appointments and telephone consultations are $225.00 per half hour for Dr. Zabrecky and/or Dr. Wolinsky. If you need to cancel your appointment, we require 24 hours notice or there will be a missed appointment fee charged for your allotted scheduled time. Requests for information from an insurance carrier may require additional work, copying of records, etc. and will be billed at the rate of $30.00 per hour.

FEE STRUCTURE

The standard health evaluation for a new patient with either Dr. Zabrecky or Dr. Wolinsky runs anywhere from one hour to an hour and a half. Fees are charged at the rate of $450.00 per hour. A $150.00 deposit is required at the time the appointment is scheduled. Cancellations must be made 48 business hours prior to your appointment or your $150.00 deposit will be forfeited. Any lab tests will be billed in addition to the evaluation. We urge patients to bring any previous testing that they have from other health care providers for the physicians to review. We will not repeat lab work that has already been performed to reduce charges for the patient.

If results of testing or symptomatology warrant, further testing will be recommended. This may consist of food allergy testing, cardiac or diabetic risk factor assessment, specific mineral/toxic metal testing, functional vitamin assays for deficiencies, immune system or endocrine systems evaluations, evaluation for malignant/pre-malignant states or suspected chronic infections. The costs of these tests are an additional charge and the necessity will be discussed if recommended to the patient. The charges for any specific, non-routine tests are in addition to the initial cost of the visit.

INSURANCE AND BILLING

Our offices do not accept assignment for insurance. Our offices are not affiliated with HMO, PPO, POS, or any Managed Care Networks. Some insurance companies may reimburse for nutritional support, preventative health care, diagnostic testing and chiropractic services. We recommend you contact Member Services at your insurance company. They will be able to provide you with information regarding your eligibility for services performed at our offices. All referrals, pre-certification and out-of-network benefits are the responsibility of the patient and NOT this office, AND WE DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN MEDICARE. If you are covered by Medicare, you must sign a form for the services provided by the Life Extension Center.

Our office will provide a superbill for your submittal, with all information necessary for insurance reimbursement. This is not a guarantee of coverage. In order to keep our services as affordable as possible, our office is on a fee-for-service basis. Payment is expected at the time of the visit.

MEDICAL RECORDS

If you have been treated in the past by your primary care physician, or any other health care provider, you may obtain copies of your medical records to bring to your first appointment. This may prove to be cost effective. We will not repeat a laboratory test unnecessarily. This may actually lower the cost of your first appointment.

To obtain medical records from another physician or medical facility, we suggest that you contact your physician's office or hospital where the testing was performed and request your medical records. As general office procedure, most offices request a signed medical release form from the patient to protect your confidential records. In some states, a medical office or hospital may require thirty (30) days notice to release your medical records or require records to be sent directly to the physician at the office address. There may be a charge for this service. You may call your physician's office or make a request in writing (via fax or mail) to forward or fax your records directly to Dr. Zabrecky for more immediate results. It is always best to fax a written request to the medical facility or travel to your physician's office to pick-up copies of your records and sign the release. One of our staff members will assist you in obtaining records for an immediate appointment.

You may decide to copy your records for your own personal file. On your first appointment, our office will be happy to copy records, at no charge, that Dr. Zabrecky will keep on file. Copies of your testing performed in our office are available at no charge to the patient. Additional copies of your testing performed in our office are available for a small fee.

After careful review of your records, Dr. Zabrecky reserves the right not to accept a patient for care if he feels this patient cannot be benefited by treatments. A patient may be referred to our medical staff members or a physician outside of this office.

Most patients are accepted for treatment at our facility. If further treatment or medication is required, a patient may be referred to an outside medical facility that handles such critical care

Our offices do not handle emergency situations. If you have a medical emergency, please report to the nearest emergency room.

FORMS OF PAYMENT

Our offices are on a fee-for-service basis. Payment is expected in FULL at the time of each visit. As stated earlier in this letter, our office does not accept insurance assignment.

Forms of payment are cash, checks, Visa and Mastercard. An Easy Pay Consent Form is available for download via our web site. It is to be filled out and returned with all other paperwork and medical records for your file. This form will allow our offices to charge telephone consultations, supplement orders and any monthly balances that you may incur at our office.

All medical and financial records are kept completely confidential. If you have any questions concerning our office payment policy, please do not hesitate to speak to a staff member.

Your Privacy

We understand the importance of privacy and are committed to maintaining the confidentiality of your medical information. We make a record of the medical care we provide and may receive such records from others. We use these records to provide or enable other health care providers to provide quality medical care, to obtain payment for services provided to you as allowed by your health plan and to enable us to meet our professional and legal obligations to operate this medical practice properly. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of protected health information and to provide individuals with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to protected health information. This notice describes how we may use and disclose your medical information. It also describes your rights and our legal obligations with respect to your medical information.