Since Medicare benefits from the demographic information they glean from these visits, and shares it with the CDC and HHS, and apparently ,that, not medical situations, is behind the Annual Wellness Visit, It is possible that the more zealous case manager might deny payment if no information is gleaned. Once the encounter turns to a new or existing medical issue, additional charges are levied by the practice. In other words, the likelihood they find a unnoticed illness through the wellness exam are slim or none.
What I object to more,is that my primary's practice will take a previously scheduled "check up or follow up visit and change it to a wellness visit without prior notice...meaning I learned they changed it when they started asking stupid questions. The end result is they got paid for two separate visits in one, the follow up, and the Wellness. Once they just billed that and Medicare denied it because 12months and one day had not passed since the last one. They billed it at retail self pay rate too. They do not understand that I don't want the dam Wellness visit. I really should fire them but what says another practice does not do the same thing?
That's cool, except what else is she going to check off? Many Medical professionals, assume that anyone on Medicare (age 65 and over) is passive, gullible and halfway into senility. Three separate Hospitals, same Corporate identity, three separate Cognizance
tests, with the same three memory questions, during my surgery - recovery - respiratory infection experience last summer. Prior to discharge I refused to answer the questions the fourth time....(Three were billed). What they did to my room mate to force him into a rehab facility was criminal. Unfortunately he didn't have an advocate present to help him. Just me, my opinion. I no longer have any trust for the medical profession.
