Free Wellness Visit
Dear Editor: A discussion of the Medicare free wellness visit around our Thanksgiving dinner table prompts this letter.
All seniors who have Medicare are entitled to a so-called free introductory visit to Medicare and a yearly free wellness visit. Reference page 48-49 of the Medicare Manual.
It is important to realize this is NOT an annual physical exam. No tangible medical care of any disease process is delivered during your introductory visit nor the annual wellness visit. The wellness visit is purely health risk assessment and preventive medicine. It is not for evaluating your diseases or medical problems. If you or your medical practitioner bring up actual illness or diseases you are suffering it is no longer free because the visit is no longer about wellness.
Just wait, it gets worse. If you or your practitioner bring up a medical problem and it is documented in your medical record, the corporate billing people gleefully will send you an outrageous bill for that “free” visit!
Suddenly you will find yourself getting an unexpected bill in the coming months for your visit that you thought was free. Surprise!
Good luck, seniors.
William J. Marx Jr., MD, RL, Sitka
