What documents should I bring to my appointment?

  • Photo identification—Driver’s license, passports, non-driver’s cards, or other government issued forms of ID are accepted
  • Insurance card (if applicable)—Main Line Health offers an uninsured discount
  • Prescription or order (if applicable)

What documents will I sign at check-in?

  • Notice of Privacy Practices
  • Consent to Treatment and Financial Obligations—This document outlines a patient’s voluntary agreement to receive medical care, treatment, or services
  • Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) Questionnaire—For those patients that have Medicare coverage, this document assists our team in determining how your insurer(s) should be billed. Medicare regulations require that all entities that bill Medicare for items or services must determine whether Medicare is the primary payer for those items or services
  • Advance Directive—You will be asked about an advance directive when you register for inpatient or outpatient hospital services. Formal advance directives are documents written in advance of serious illness that state your choices about your care, or name someone to make those choices, if you become unable to make decisions. Medicare and hospital accrediting bodies (organizations that oversee the quality of care provided by hospitals) require we ask each patient, at each visit, whether or not the patient has a current advance directive. This could be in the form of a living will, health care power of attorney, or both. Through these documents, you can make legally valid decisions about your future medical treatment. Find out more about advance care planning.
  • Advanced Beneficiary Notice—For patients that have Medicare coverage, this document serves as notice that some services we provide are not covered by Medicare. You have the option to continue with treatment, in which case you may be financially liable for non-covered charges, or to refuse these treatments that are not covered by Medicare.

Most insurance plans require that you pay a copayment, coinsurance and/or deductible for your health care services (patient responsibility). In some instances, your insurance carrier may require a precertification for certain outpatient services that have been prescribed for you. This is the physician’s responsibility to obtain from your insurance company. If your physician has not obtained a precertification, your test or procedure may be cancelled or delayed.

Main Line Health representatives will present you with an estimate of your copayment, coinsurance and/or deducible based on our understanding of your individual insurance coverage. It is our expectation that this copayment, coinsurance, or deductible be made at time of service.

How is my insurance billed?

By signing the Consent to Treatment and Financial Obligations document, you authorize Main Line Health to bill your insurance (on your behalf) for the services that we provide.

Once you have completed treatment, our billing office will file a claim with your insurance(s). In most cases, your payer will send their portion of the payment directly to us. You should receive an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from your insurer that outlines the amount they have paid on your claim, along with the amount that you may be responsible for. Main Line Health receives this same document and uses this information to determine how much your insurer has determined is your responsibility.

How much will I owe?

Copayment

You will be asked to pay a copay amount when you present to our facility for your services. The amount of your copayment may vary and is dependent on the type of benefits that you with your insurer.

Copay amounts are typically paid each time a medical service is assessed.

Deductible

This is the amount you pay for covered health services before your insurance plan starts to pay. As with a copayment, the amount of your deductible is dependent on the type of benefits that you have with your insurer. With a $1,000 deductible, for example, you may pay the first $1,000 of covered services yourself before your insurer will begin to pay.

Deductibles are typically billed to you after your insurer has processed your claim and notifies Main Line Health of your remaining balance

Coinsurance

This is the percentage of costs of a covered service you pay (20%, for example) after you’ve paid your deductible.

Coinsurance is typically billed to you after your insurance has processed your claim and notifies Main Line Health of your remaining balance

How can I request an estimate?

If you would like to receive an estimate of your out of pocket responsibility for a future procedure, please call our estimate line: 484.337.1970.

What forms of payment are accepted?

Main Line Health accepts cash, check, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover.

If your insurance organization will not pay because of a problem with the information provided, the billing office will try to correct the information and re-file the claim.

  • After payment is received from the primary insurance organization, the billing office will file claims with any secondary insurance organizations.
  • When all insurance payments to the hospital have been processed and paid by your insurance company, you are billed for any remaining unpaid balance. You will receive a statement by mail.

It is important you are familiar with your benefits and the extent of your medical coverage. We suggest that you contact your insurance carrier before scheduling an elective procedure and before services are rendered.

Most hospital visits involve both physician and hospital resources. Please be aware that physician charges are billed separately according to the terms of your insurance plan. A list of typical physician service organizations and contact information can be found on the Billing and Physician Group Contacts page. It is possible you will receive only one hospital bill, but several physician bills depending on the complexity of your care.