Why is Preventive Care Important?
Your health is important.
How you take care of it plays a big role in what your future will be like.
Preventive care is the first step in knowing how healthy you are.
Why should you get preventive care?
- To catch health conditions early, when they may be treatable
- To help discover potential risks to your future health, and
- To get immunizations for the flu, pneumonia, booster shots and shots for children
Each year you should have an exam by your doctor and certain screenings recommended for your age and gender.
Most medical plans cover preventive care at 100% when you see an in-network doctor.
First things first!
When you make your appointment, and when you check in, be sure to let the scheduler know that your visit should be coded as preventive care.
If you are getting any other services because of an ongoing condition, or any diagnostic care, they will not qualify as preventive care services.
During your visit your doctor may check the following:
- Blood pressure
- Weight/Body mass index (BMI)
- Cholesterol levels
- Blood glucose level, and
- Immunization history
Women’s health services, including:
- Breast exam
- Pap smear, and
- Cervical Exam
Are covered at 100% as preventive care.
Are part of your preventive care coverage.
There are other services or screenings that may be scheduled at another time with the help of your primary care doctor that are also covered at 100% as part of your preventive care benefit,
Such as:
- Mammogram
- Colorectal cancer screening
- Prostate exam, and
- Bone density test
The goal of preventive care is to “prevent” a serious health condition by finding problems early.
Heart Disease is the number one killer for both men and women.
High blood pressure and high cholesterol are two main risk factors for heart disease, which kills 910,000* Americans every year.
8% of Americans have diabetes, 57 million have pre-diabetes**. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity and an elevated blood glucose level are all factors that put you at risk for developing diabetes.
Getting regular screenings to check for cancer are important.
Don’t wait until it’s too late.
For better or worse, if you get a diagnosis early you may be able to treat it and make lifestyle changes that can possibly change your health outlook.
Remember, all of these screenings are covered at 100% when you see an in-network provider.
Take a step in the right direction and start by scheduling a preventive care examination with your doctor.
To see the preventive care guidelines, visit uhcpreventivecare.com
*American Heart Association
** American Diabetes Association
***American Cancer Society
Source: http://www.uhcpreventivecare.com/site/theme/assets/videos/PreventiveCare-Why-Transcript.html