What is a Naturopath?
In the state of Washington, naturopaths are licensed as primary care physicians that are trained in all aspects of preventive and natural healthcare. Naturopathic medicine emphasizes disease prevention, encouragement of the body’s own inherent healing abilities and treatment of the whole person. Naturopaths are trained to use a wide variety of modalities including conventional and alternative methods.
What kind of training do Naturopaths undergo?
Naturopathic doctors have similar training to conventional physicians. Naturopathic doctors are required to complete pre-medical studies at the university level before applying to an accredited naturopathic medical school, then complete a 5 year post -graduate training. The post graduate training is similar to that of a medical doctor, including basic sciences and clinical courses, with training in diagnosis and pharmacology and additional emphasis on natural medical interventions. This includes extensive education in the philosophy and implementation of safe and effective natural therapeutics botanical medicine, vitamin/supplement therapy, homeopathy, pharmacology, nutrition, physical medicine, and lifestyle counseling. They also order laboratory tests and imaging studies as appropriate and refer patients to specialists when needed.
Are the services at Wildflower Integrative covered under my insurance plan?
Dr. Jones has made the decision to no longer directly contract with private health insurance plans. This means payment for clinic visits are due at the time of service and we do not directly bill your insurance company. Unfortunately, the amount of time we spend in visits with each patient does not translate into the insurance model whose primary objective is to control costs. Due to this model, the average amount of time spent with an MD is 7-10 minutes per visit. You will spend 75 to 90 minutes with Dr. Anastasia at your first visit and about 30 to 60 minutes at follow ups. Wildflower is happy to provide you with a complete superbill with all appropriate codes to submit to your insurance for reimbursement. The reimbursements will vary based upon your plan and out of network coverage. It is up to you to know this ahead of time if you expect to get insurance coverage. We do not provide benefit checks.
Are Labs covered by Insurance?
Yes, the majority of conventional laboratory testing ordered by us will be billed through the lab to insurance on your behalf. This includes labs such as Quest and LabCorp. We also offer specialty labs to look at food allergies, comprehensive GI panels, and environmental toxicity panels, and advanced nutrient testing. These are usually not covered by private insurance plans.