Thank you for choosing Des Moines University Clinic as your health care provider. We are committed to keeping you healthy, achieving your health care goals and ensuring that you clearly understand our financial policy. If you have any questions regarding this policy, please contact our billing department at 515-271-1050.
Payment for Services
- We participate in most, but not all, insurance plans, however you are responsible for verifying that we are an in-network provider under your plan.
- For your convenience, we accept assignment to bill your insurance plans for the services we provide.
- Our agreement with your insurance requires us to collect all co-payments, co-insurance and deductibles.
- For your convenience, we accept cash, check, debit card and all major credit cards as payment for services.
- Full payment is due on or before the time of service for self-pay patients, or if insurance information (and copy of insurance card) have NOT been provided.
- For cases in which we bill insurance directly, it is your responsibility to know what your insurance company covers through your policy. Our office does not assume any responsibility for denial of any or all parts of your claim by any insurance company. If payment is not received from the insurance carrier or other responsible party within 90 days, you acknowledge that we have the right to bill you directly.
- To accommodate those in need, we do offer payment plans as well as financial assistance up to 100% for those who qualify. Please ask at the front desk for a financial assistance application or to set up a payment plan. You may also call 515-271-1050 to set up a payment plan.
Guarantor Responsibilities
- The guarantor is the party responsible for payment of the patient bill.
- The guarantor is always the patient unless the patient is a minor or an incapacitated adult.
- The guarantor for a minor child is the parent who presents with the child at registration unless a divorce decree is provided indicating another party is responsible for the child’s medical bills.
- Co-payments, co-insurance and deductibles are due at the time of service.
- A current insurance ID card for each insurance should be brought to every appointment. Inform us of all your insurances that you may have so that we may process claims with each of them.
- Failure to provide accurate billing information at the time of service may result in fees becoming the guarantor’s responsibility.
- Please notify us immediately of any changes in your insurance information or coverage.
- Submit all information required by your insurance company to guarantee payment for services rendered to you.
- Provide photo identification.
- You are ultimately responsible for payment of all services.
Your insurance policy is a contract between you and the insurance company. The DMU Clinic is not a party to that contract. Please be aware that some, and perhaps all, of the services provided may not be covered for various reasons. We are a member of most, but not all, insurance plans. Our agreement with these plans requires us to collect all patient co-payments, co-insurance and deductibles.
If you have a Health Savings Account, a deposit of services is due at the time of service. The deposit will be based on the specific services performed. We will file the charges with your HSA and reimburse any credit amount to you.
We participate in Medicare and Medicaid. If you have supplemental insurance, we will bill your insurer directly for you. If you have Medicare, you may receive a bill after your insurance has paid for any remaining co-pay or deductible.
Please help us serve you and all DMU Clinic patients better by keeping your scheduled appointments. If you must cancel or reschedule an appointment, please call at least 24 hours in advance. Cancelation with less than 24-hour notice is considered a no-show. After three no-shows within 12 months, we may discontinue providing you with future care.
Understanding the difference between preventive/wellness visits and office visits is crucial for managing your health care expenses. Preventive visits are often called annual physicals and are an opportunity to discuss preventative health care only and include a physical exam. Office visits address specific health concerns, whether acute issues or ongoing chronic conditions. Combining these into one appointment may result in two charges due to federal billing laws. To avoid unexpected costs, clarify your visit type with your provider and check your insurance coverage beforehand.
If the reason for your care is a result of a work-related injury, we will require information regarding your health insurance, or employer and your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. We also must verify that your employer assumes responsibility for charges incurred. If we cannot verify employer responsibility or we are unable to obtain information on your employer’s Workers’ Compensation insurance, as a courtesy we will bill your health insurance carrier.
If the reason for your care is a result of an accident claim, we will require information regarding your health insurance and accident location. Des Moines University Clinic will not file claims with a third-party payer or law office unless you have Medicare or Medicaid. It is your responsibility to contact your health insurance carrier to provide accident details and request subrogation. If you do not wish to file this claim to health insurance, you will be billed as self-pay and it is your responsibility to collect reimbursement from the third-party payer. If payment is not received from your health insurance carrier within 90 days, or payment is withdrawn due to another party being responsible, we may bill you directly.
Automatic Payment Policy for Fitness and Performance Classes
When enrolling in certain fitness or performance class, participants may choose to set up automatic payments instead of paying month-to-month on their own.
See our full Automatic Payment Policy for more information.
Medical Records
- We will send your records directly to another physician’s office at no charge.
- Information from your medical record is available via our online patient portal at any time. Learn more about accessing the patient portal, or submit a Request for Medical Records form.
- If you require disability and/or FMLA documents to be completed by our office, please note that it may take up to 10 working days to complete these forms. There will be a nominal administrative fee charged for these activities.
Financial Assistance
Des Moines University Clinic is a nonprofit health organization with a commitment to assist those who seek our care, regardless of their ability to pay.
If you are unable to pay for all or part of the care you receive from our clinics, you may be eligible for free or discounted services. You may qualify for 100% of your care provided for free, or a discounted charge under one or all of these criteria:
- Your family income is low. Free care may be available to patients with family earnings less than or equal to 200% of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines for the current year who are uninsured or underinsured.
- Discounts may be provided for financially needy underinsured or uninsured patients earning between 201% and 400% of the FPIG household income for the current year.
- Patients may also be eligible for financial assistance based upon medical indigency. Des Moines University Clinic may determine a person is “medically indigent” if they are unable to pay some or all of their medical bills because those medical bills exceed a certain percentage of their family or household income and/or assets (for example, bills due to catastrophic costs or conditions), even though they have income or assets that otherwise exceed the eligibility requirements for free or discounted care.
Patients applying for financial assistance must exhaust all options available to them for insurance coverage including, but not limited to, applying for Medicaid coverage prior to receiving financial assistance.