FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What Is a Virtual Visit (Telehealth)?

Telehealth is an online appointment via a secure video chat. (You’ll just need a stable internet connection and a device with a camera and microphone. Your laptop, phone, or tablet is fine.) This is a great option for patients who need guidance and treatment but are unable to make it to the office. Via telehealth, Dr. Robertson can provide quality care for nutritional consultations, physical therapy, stress relief, and more. Be sure to specify that you would like a telehealth appointment when scheduling.

How Much Is a Telehealth Visit?

Many insurances now cover telehealth appointments for the same or a similar fee as an in-person appointment. Our office would be happy to check the charge for this benefit specifically with your insurance plan. Patients who do not have insurance can book a telehealth appointment for the same discounted fee as their in-person appointments. For more details, please review our Telehealth Informed Consent form or call the office.

What Should I Expect from Treatment?

Dr. Robertson will take a thorough health history, including discussing the forms you filled out in advance of your visit. He may perform orthopedic and neurological tests to help him develop a complete picture of your musculoskeletal system. In most cases, he will also do hands-on joint and muscle evalutation as well as treatments like targeted stretching and neuromuscular reeducation and perform a chiropractic adjustment (which can take many forms). Whole Chiropractic uses a secure off-site scribe system to help produce the necessary documentation from your visit; this enables the doctor to focus 100% on you and your care.

Although you may initially require more frequent visits to address long-standing patterns and jump-start the healing process, we are not going to keep you coming back three times a week forever! (In fact, patients rarely need three visits a week, even in the beginning!) 

Our goal is to get to the root of your health problems, not just treat the symptoms. With this achieved, we aim to give you the tools you need to stay well! Often this includes periodic tune-ups (see Maintenance, below) and a plan for mind-body exercise that’s sustainable for you.

But I Don’t Want My Neck Cracked!

It’s OK! Although chiropractic adjustments are extremely safe—and to many people feel fantastic—we have plenty of other options for patients who dislike manual manipulation, or for whom it’s not appropriate.

What Should I Do to Address My Pain if I Can’t Get an Immediate Appointment?

To provide you with the most focused, individualized treatment, Dr. Robertson sees a limited number of new patients each week. This ensures a thorough examination and the best care possible, but it also means we may not be able to see you right away.

In many cases, such as those involving acute injuries or flareups of long-standing problems, this possible waiting period can aid diagnosis by allowing inflammation to subside before evaluation; however, we understand that it’s also an uncomfortable time! Please visit the Resources page to learn what you can do to ease your symptoms right now—you may be happy to learn that there’s often quite a lot!—or call the office for recommendations.

Will Insurance Pay for My Visit?

We participate with selected insurance plans, including CareFirst, the Federal Employee Program, other BlueCross plans, and Aetna. Although most insurance includes chiropractic coverage, each plan is different. Please call the office at 410.305.1331 for rates or for help understanding your benefits.

If your insurer is an HMO or other “managed care plan," you may need a referral from your primary care physician, or PCP. (Here’s a sample referral letter you can take to your PCP.)

If your insurance plan does not cover our services (or you’re under maintenance/wellness care; see below), we offer discounted non-insurance rates that will still allow you to access our top-quality care. We keep these rates as economical as possible; cost should not be a barrier to healing. We offer additional discounts for active-duty and retired military and their families, and for seniors 65 and over. Please call our office to inquire.

How Does Insurance Work, Anyway?

Here’s an enlightening explanation. While costs to patients go up, payments to providers like us go down; at the same time, the burden of paperwork and other administrative requirements continues to increase. We believe strongly that healthcare, including chiropractic and physical therapy, works best as a partnership; third-party intermediaries, including insurance companies, fall outside this patient-provider relationship and unfortunately sometimes negatively affect our ability to offer the care we want to provide by dramatically increasing administrative costs and limiting patient care.

Do You Take Medicare or Medicaid?

Whole Chiropractic has chosen not to participate with many insurers, including Medicare and Medicaid. (Here are some of the reasons we don’t accept Medicare, although we do love seniors.) We are happy to work with patients who have this coverage to find ways to make the care they need more affordable.

What Is Maintenance Care?

After completing a treatment plan—once their acute problems are resolved and they’re stable in a symptom-free state—most people find that periodic treatments help them to feel their best. The frequency of these maintenance visits varies based on lots of individual factors including your activity level, diet, and stress levels.

We’ve also found over the years that patients who regularly engage in self-care with specific practices like yoga and meditation, pilates, chi gong, or tai chi are better able to monitor their health, stay ahead of chronic problem areas, and address exacerbations more quickly with tune-up courses of treatment.

Note that although regular self-care is essential to well-being, insurance does not cover “wellness” or “maintenance” visits.