Q: What conditions do chiropractors treat?
A: Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) care for patients of all ages, with a variety of health conditions. DCs are especially well known for their expertise in caring for patients with back pain, neck pain and headaches…particularly with their highly skilled manipulations or chiropractic adjustments. They also care for patients with a wide range of injuries and disorders of the musculoskeletal system, involving the muscles, ligaments and joints. These painful conditions often involve or impact the nervous system, which can cause referred pain and dysfunction distant to the region of injury. The benefits of chiropractic care extend to general health issues, as well, since our body structure affects our overall function. DCs also counsel patients on diet, nutrition, exercise, healthy habits, and occupational and lifestyle modification.
Q: Will it hurt?
A: Chiropractic manipulation is a carefully controlled technique which rarely causes discomfort to the patient.
Q: Is chiropractic treatment safe?
A: Chiropractic is widely recognized as one of the safest drug-free, non-invasive therapies available for the treatment of neuromusculoskeletal complaints. Although chiropractic has an excellent safety record, no health treatment is completely free of potential adverse effects. The risks associated with chiropractic, however, are very small. Many patients feel immediate relief following chiropractic treatment, but some may experience mild soreness, stiffness or aching, just as they do after some forms of exercise. Current research shows that minor discomfort or soreness following spinal manipulation typically fades within 24 hours.
Q: Is chiropractic treatment ongoing?
A: The hands-on nature of the chiropractic treatment is essentially what requires patients to visit the chiropractor a number of times. To be treated by a chiropractor, a patient needs to be in his or her office. In contrast, a course of treatment from medical doctors often involves a pre-established plan that is conducted at home (i.e. taking a course of antibiotics once a day for a couple of weeks). A chiropractor may provide acute, chronic, and/or preventive care thus making a certain number of visits sometimes necessary. Your doctor of chiropractic should tell you the extent of treatment recommended and how long you can expect it to last.
Q: Is chiropractic treatment appropriate for children?
A: Yes, children can benefit from chiropractic care. Children are very physically active and experience many types of falls and blows from activities of daily living as well as from participating in sports. Injuries such as these may cause many symptoms including back and neck pain, stiffness, soreness or discomfort. Chiropractic care is always adapted to the individual patient. It is a highly skilled treatment, and in the case of children, very gentle.
Q: Do insurance plans cover chiropractic?
A: Yes. Chiropractic care is included in most health insurance plans, including major medical plans, workers’ compensation, Medicare, some Medicaid plans, and Blue Cross Blue Shield plans for federal employees, among others. Chiropractic care is also available to active-duty members of the armed forces at more than 60 military bases and is available to veterans at more than 60 major veterans medical facilities.
Q: Do I need a referral from a medical doctor?
A: Most likely no. Chiropractors are first-contact doctors under state and federal regulations. A small percentage of patients require a referral from their medical doctor and your doctor can inform you if this is needed.
Q: What type of education and training do chiropractors have?
A: Doctors of chiropracticare educated as primary-contact health care providers, with an emphasis on diagnosis and treatment of conditions related to the musculoskeletal system (the muscles, ligaments and joints of the spine and extremities) and the nerves that supply them. Educational requirements for doctors of chiropractic are among the most stringent of any of the health care professions. The typical applicant for chiropractic college has already acquired nearly four years of pre-medical undergraduate college education, including courses in biology, inorganic and organic chemistry, physics, psychology and related lab work. Once accepted into an accredited chiropractic college, the requirements become even more demanding — four to five academic years of professional study are the standard. Doctors of chiropractic are educated in orthopedics, neurology, physiology, human anatomy, clinical diagnosis including laboratory procedures, diagnostic imaging, exercise, nutrition rehabilitation and more. Because chiropractic care includes highly skilled manipulation/adjusting techniques, a significant portion of time is spent in clinical technique training to master these important manipulative procedures. In total, the chiropractic college curriculum includes a minimum of 4,200 hours of classroom, laboratory and clinical experience. The course of study is approved by the Council on Chiropractic Education, an accrediting agency that is fully recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Q: How is a chiropractic adjustment performed?
A: Chiropractic adjustment or manipulation is a manual procedure that utilizes the highly refined skills developed during the doctor of chiropractic’s intensive years of chiropractic education. The chiropractic physician typically uses his or her hands–or an instrument–to manipulate the joints of the body, particularly the spine, in order to restore or enhance joint function. This often helps resolve joint inflammation and reduces the patient’s pain. Chiropractic manipulation is a highly controlled procedure that rarely causes discomfort. The chiropractor adapts the procedure to meet the specific needs of each patient. Patients often note positive changes in their symptoms immediately following treatment.
Q: Why is there a popping sound when a joint is adjusted?
A: Adjustment (or manipulation) of a joint may result in the release of a gas bubble between the joints, which makes a popping sound. The same thing occurs when you “crack” your knuckles. The noise is caused by the change of pressure within the joint, which results in gas bubbles being released. There is usually minimal, if any, discomfort involved.
QUESTION: Why did Medicare deny or not pay for the adjustment service?
It can be both surprising and confusing to see Medicare deny covered service, but the issue is related to when the services are provided, not the service itself. When services are provided during a time of acute injury, for example, a fall or lifting accident, Medicare will cover that service. However, when the service is provided during a time of maintenance or preventive care, for example, a periodic treatment for maintaining health or preventing injury, Medicare will not cover this service. The visit in question was billed under a code that told Medicare the treatment was for maintenance care. In other words, medicare only pays for treatment that is for acute conditions not for preventative care.
QUESTION: Why is Medicare not paying for my service(s)?
It can be confusing to know which services are denied or covered by Medicare. With chiropractors, Medicare only pays for the adjustment treatment. All other services or products are not covered, regardless of the diagnosis or treatment codes. In your case, the service questioned is not a covered medicare service.
QUESTION: Why is my secondary insurance not paying for service(s)?
It’s frustrating to see services denied by your secondary, but these services are denied because we are an out-of-network provider.
QUESTION: Why is my Medicare supplemental insurance not paying for services?
It can be frustrating to see your secondary insurance deny payment for services at our office. Unfortunately, your secondary is a Medicare supplemental, which covers either the 20% Medicare coinsurance or the Medicare deductible. All other services that Medicare denies will also be denied by your supplemental.
QUESTION: Why can we not submit claims to your Medicare secondary insurance company?
We understand that it can be frustrating to see charges that should be submitted and paid by your Medicare secondary insurance company. However, since our office is out-of-network, only Medicare can submit your claims to your secondary. Ask Medicare to submit your claims to your secondary. In the meantime, we would appreciate a payment and will refund you if your secondary pays
QUESTION: Why do I owe money when I paid my balance on the last visit?
We understand your confusion. Your last payment was applied to charges related to previously processed insurance claims. Since then, your insurance has processed your more recent claims, leaving a new current balance. It takes 2-8 weeks to receive claims from insurance companies that may result in patient charges.
QUESTION: Why are services not paid by my insurance?
Seeing unexpected charges that should have been covered by your insurance is frustrating for all of us. The main reasons for these charges are deductibles, non-covered services, expired coverage, or incorrect information that was provided to us. Your insurance company can tell you which one of these reasons apply.
QUESTION: Can you resubmit my insurance claim?
We don’t need to resubmit your claim because your insurance already has the claim. They just need to reprocess it with the correct information.
