Clinic In Chinook and Harlem | United States

Patient Rights & Responsibilities

Welcome and thank you for choosing Sweet Medical Center as your patient-centered medical home! We are committed to providing you with the best medical care and empowering you to live a healthy life. Your chosen primary care provider looks forward to working as your partner to facilitate an expanded level of care by working with both you and other health care providers to take care of you as a team. As part of this partnership, you have specific responsibilities, as does SMC.

As a patient of SMC, you have the right to:

Receive excellent care at the highest standards, regardless of income, insurance or ability to pay.
Receive services without discrimination on race or ethnicity, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation or preference, marital status, income or any physical or mental disability.
Always be treated with courtesy and respect by our entire staff, protecting your dignity and privacy.
Be seen and receive test results in a timely manner.
Ask questions about your appointment, health care, treatment plan or other concerns you may have about the clinic.
Refuse treatment (when legally allowed) or request another medical opinion before any procedure.
Request complete, signed copies of our policies, including credit, collection, privacy, etc.
Receive an explanation of any diagnosis, treatment, prognosis or suggested treatment along with alternatives and possible outcomes.
Receive information about support services, including educational opportunities or help with applying for insurance options.
Receive information about specific charges and your financial responsibility for our services.
To file a grievance or complaint without fear of retaliation and to have it handled fairly and efficiently.

You have the responsibility to:

Give us complete and accurate personal, financial, medical and insurance information.
Be on time for scheduled appointments, and call 24 hours or as soon as possible when you need to cancel or reschedule.
Treat staff and patients with courtesy and respect, including protecting the privacy and dignity of other patients.
Supervise your children while at SMC.
Refrain from bringing any weapon, explosive or animal (except service animals) into SMC.
Pay for SMC service promptly.
Ask questions about your treatment or other health care issues you don’t understand.
Follow your provider’s treatment plan.
Inform your provider of any changes to your medication or condition.
Follow SMC procedures.
Inform us when you’ve seen other health care providers so we can help coordinate the best care for you.
Provide feedback to help us improve your care.

No Show

Procedure

Payment & Collection Processing

Keeping scheduled appointments is an important part of your health care. When you miss an appointment, you also miss out on the opportunity to improve your health. In addition, it uses an appointment slot that may have been used by another patient who needed it. We understand that things come up and ask that you notify us at your earliest convenience if you are unable to come to your scheduled appointment. We’ll work with you to reschedule on a day and time that works for you.

To provide continuity and consistent access to care, Sweet Medical Center assesses and identifies patients who have missed appointments. SMC communicates with patients, families and caregivers in the event that they do not keep an appointment with a provider at SMC or an appointment outside of SMC. The appointments may include a re-check for a chronic problem or a preventive visit; alternatively, the encounter may have been one scheduled with a specialist to whom the patient was referred. As determined by the provider, the communication is via telephone and/or secure electronic communication through the patient portal. SMC will attempt to contact the patient in the days following the failure to keep the appointment. If applicable, chronic failure to keep appointments, as defined by three or more no-shows, will be addressed with the patient.

When services are rendered, patients shall be urged to make appropriate payments for such services, including nominal fees, co-payments, co-insurance, as well as to make payments on any outstanding balance. A credit or deferred payment plan should be extended to patients as necessary.

Patients with third party coverage shall be informed of their liability for payment if payment is not rendered by the third party payer. After the claim is processed by the third party payer, the patient will be invoiced for any outstanding balance due. Patient statements will be mailed on a monthly cycle.

SMC accepts all insurances – public and private, including Workers’ Compensation - and will bill your insurance company as a courtesy. However, please remember that any insurance coverage you may have constitutes an agreement between you and your insurance company, and the final responsibility for payment is always yours.

If you cannot pay the full amount of the current balance, please call the clinic at 406.357.3235 within 30 days to work out a payment plan. If payment plans are not arranged within 30 days, or payments are not made within 150 days, your account may be turned over to a collection agency. This is a last resort, and we will gladly work with you to make satisfactory payment arrangements.

Fee Disputes. If you think your bill is in error, please contact us immediately. We will be more than happy to discuss your bill with you over the telephone or in person. If a patient disputes the accuracy of his/her invoice, an attempt shall be made to resolve the disputed balance by telephone or in person with the revenue cycle management staff members and/or the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). If the patient is unable to resolve the dispute, he/she shall be encouraged to utilize the patient grievance process.

Payment & Collection