Frequently Asked Questions

What is included in membership?

Our membership is an annual plan providing personalized, root-cause-focused medicine. Memberships include:

— 8 total visits per year including:

-6 extended time visits with your functional medicine practitioner

-2 health coaching visits

— Unlimited messaging with your care team via secure patient portal

— 20% discount on supplements purchased through our Fullscript partner website

— All visits are extended time, including:

-Annual functional medicine visit (60 minutes)

-Initial follow up visit to review labs and personalize plan of care (45 minutes)

-4 follow up visits to fine tune plan and monitor progress (30 minutes)

— Assessment of your personal risk profiles across many domains (brain health, cardiometabolic health, hormonal health, mental health, etc)

— Personal comprehensive care plan

— Specialty laboratory testing and interpretation

— Prescriptions and refills (medications and/or supplements, as appropriate)

— Curated recommendations on wellness products

— No copays

— Convenient online appointment scheduling

— In person (Denver, Colorado) and virtual visits

— Unlimited free access to Reimbursify to ease superbill submission to your insurance

What is not included in membership?

Membership fees cover Tendwell’s professional services. While we may prescribe medications or order laboratory tests, diagnostic imaging and other services, the fees for those services are not included in your membership. Instead, you must arrange directly with the third-party laboratories and other providers to pay their fees, usually by using your health insurance. We can sometimes help you keep these costs down. Talk to us and we’d be happy to help.

Likewise, membership does not cover durable medical equipment, supplements, medications, care provided by non-affiliated providers, or any services not expressly included in your membership agreement. Again, many of these third party services and products may be covered by your insurance.

Can Tendwell be my Primary Care Practitioner (PCP)?

Tendwell is a functional and holistic medicine practice that focuses on the deep structure of your health and root causes of dysfunction. We emphasize natural interventions, but also prescribe medications and other standard treatments when they are the best tools for a particular job. Your membership gives you access to up to six extended-time visits per year with a trained functional health medical practitioner as outlined in our membership page as well as visits with a health coach and other perks listed there.

Tendwell is not like a standard medical practice. We are not optimized to maximize insurance billing by seeing large numbers of patients over short periods of time. We think the traditional model does a disservice to patients which is why we started Tendwell.

That said, we do many of the best things traditional medicine does and are often asked to act as members’ primary care providers. So, if you need to see your provider for an illness or to coordinate care as a PCP, you are more than welcome to use one or more of your visits to attend to these kinds of issues. We can also handle referrals to specialists who we trust and otherwise play quarterback to your overall healthcare.

While we do not provide urgent or emergency care (you should go to an urgent care clinic or call 911 for those things), we also do our best to accommodate texts and brief phone calls for quick problem-related consultations, medication refill requests and similar items. Please keep calls and texts to normal business hours unless you need urgent advice (prescription refills are not urgent).

Some patients choose to use Tendwell as something separate and apart from their primary care provider and some choose to use Tendwell for both its deep structure functional medicine approach as well as more routine issues as a PCP. The choice is up to you.

Please note, however, that if you have health insurance, it is possible there are constraints on your ability to use an out of network primary care provider (Tendwell is not in network with any insurance). You are responsible to determine whether your insurance imposes any rules and whether Tendwell is your best choice to be a PCP within the framework of your particular insurance situation.

What does “unlimited messaging” mean?

Tendwell members have unlimited access to messaging through their patient portals. This service is for brief questions and other consultations. Messaging is not generally appropriate for complex issues, which require an appointment. That said, we want the functional medicine program to work for you and are happy to support you and meet you where you are, so do not hesitate to message us. This service is NOT FOR EMERGENCIES; call 911 for emergency situations.

What happens if I don't use all of my visits within the year?

Visits do not roll over from year to year. We have found that patients have ample time to use all of their visits within the twelve months of their membership. If you are approaching the end of your membership year and are concerned you will not use all of you appointments, give us a call and we can talk.

How do I cancel my membership?

You may cancel your membership at any time by contacting us at info@tendwellhealth.com. Cancellation is effective 30 days after you inform us of your decision. If you are paying your membership fee on monthly installments, and an installment comes due during the 30 days, it will be billed. No further installments will be billed after the 30 day period has expired. Amounts that have been charged (whether in an annual lump sum payment or in monthly installments) will not be refunded. You will continue to have access to Tendwell’s service through the effective date of your cancellation, or, if you have paid in a single annual lump sum, until the expiration of the annual period.

If, as of the effective date of termination, the fair market value of the services you received during your membership exceeded the amount you paid in fees, you will be charged the difference between the fair market value and the fees you have paid to date. Further details (including the fair market value of Tendwell services) can be found in your clinical membership agreement.

Tendwell takes a functional approach to medicine that delves deep into the basic structure of your health. This kind of medicine has better outcomes for all patients, be they in prime health, concerned about cognitive and other declines as they age, or suffering from a specific medical problem.

Although effective for anyone, Tendwell’s approach truly shines with respect to the treatment of chronic conditions — often ones for which our members have repeatedly sought treatment from standard medical practitioners, to no avail. Among other chronic conditions, we focus on:

—Digestive and Gut Issues including SIBO & IBS

—Cognitive Health (Alzheimer’s Prevention, Brain Health)

—Migraines

—Perimenopause, Menopause, Fertility Optimization

—Autoimmune and Inflamatory Conditions

—Mental Wellbeing and Health

—Women’s Health

—Metabolism and Weight Management

—Diabetes

—Cardiometabolic Health

What is a Nurse Practitioner? Can you prescribe medicaitons and testing like an MD?

A Nurse Practitioner is an advanced practice clinician with a Master’s Degree in Nursing, NP’s can diagnose, prescribe and treat patients. They can prescribe the same medications, imaging, lab tests and treatments that doctors can.

Susannah is a board certified NP with specialty degrees in Adult Health & Holistic Medicine. She is also certified by the Institute for Functional Medicine, the leading professional standards organization for MD’s, NPs, DOs and other practitioners.

Where should I purchase my supplements?

It is likely that your comprehensive care plan will include recommendations for supplements. There are several supplement vendors out there, and we encourage you to find the best source for you. To make it easier, we have partnered with Fullscript to provide a curated list of pre-approved, high-quality supplements for purchase. Members get a 20% discount when purchasing through Fullscript.

How can I make an appointment?

Members can self-schedule appointments through their member dashboards, accessible here.

What is your appointment cancellation policy?

We understand that there are times when patients must miss appointments due to emergencies or other obligations. Unfortunately, other patients sometimes pay the price of last-minute cancellations if they are unable to get the care they need because the calendar is full. We ask that if you need to cancel an appointment, you let us know as soon as possible. Appointments canceled less than 48 hours in advance will incur a $50 fee.

Will my insurance cover my visit?

The quick answer: insurance may cover some or all of the cost of your visits if you have out of network benefits; and we can help make it easier for you to get the reimbursement you deserve.

Let us explain: To offer the very best in care without the compromises often required by insurance companies, our practice is out-of-network, direct pay only. Patients are encouraged to know their insurance benefits and to understand their deductibles. We are happy to assist you apply for out-of-network coverage by generating detailed billing statements called “superbills” required by insurance companies. We have also partnered with Reimbursify, a company that helps make out-of-network reimbursement easy. Some patients report getting reimbursed up to 70% of their visit fees depending on their plan. Because Tendwell is a Reimbursify “Practice Pro” provider, their services come at no cost to you.

Members have access to superbills and Reimbursify through the Member Dashboard (superbills are available on the patient portal & Reimbursify is accessible from the Dashboard directly).

Will Insurance Cover My Lab Fees?

In the healthcare industry, laboratories charge fees that are separate from the costs of a medical visit. Payment for lab fees is arranged directly between you and the labs processing your tests, but we work hard to help you understand the process and minimize the amount you will need to pay out of pocket.

Wherever possible, we order standard tests from labs that are in-network for a wide variety of medical insurance plans. Generally speaking, these tests should be covered by insurance. However, a number of the specialized tests that are among the most useful in getting to the root causes of dysfunction are performed by only one or a handful of laboratories nationwide. Some of these labs may not take insurance and some of the tests may not be covered under certain plans.

Whether or not you have insurance coverage for a particular test, you may use FSA/HSA dollars to pay for any amounts you are responsible for out of pocket.

Can I use my HSA/FSA funds to pay for Tendwell membership ?

Many of our members use their FSA/HSA to pay for specialty tests, lab work, supplements, and other charges. However, we recommend checking with your FSA/HSA company/carrier for more information and details as to how you can use these funds for any membership related fees.

We are more than happy to help get you any paperwork that your HSA/FSA administrator may require.

I am a beneficiary of Medicare. Can I use my benefits?

Tendwell’s practitioners are all opted out of Medicare. Accordingly, you must agree not to submit any claims to Medicare related to Tendwell services and must sign an informed consent establishing your knowledge that Medicare will not pay for your Tendwell services. You must inform us immediately if you have Medicare or if you become eligible for Medicare during the course of your membership. We will provide you with additional forms that are required for you to be a Tendwell member. Tendwell cannot provide services to any Medicare beneficiary who does not sign our agreements.

Note that although our clinicians have opted out of Medicare, they have retained order and refer privileges, which means that third parties such as labs or referred specialists who accept Medicare may be able to provide some covered services.

I receive Medicaid, what impact does that have?

Tendwell does not participate in Medicaid. Accordingly, no reimbursement may be sought from Medicad for any Tendwell service. Moreover, in some states, a practitioner that does not participate in Medicaid may not treat a recipient even if the recipient is willing to pay out of pocket for the services. Tendwell will not serve any Medicaid recipients in Oregon or Colorado. If you are in New York and have Medicaid, you may receive services, but must acknowledge that all services will be paid for by you without any option to be reimbursed from Medicaid. If you have questions about your specific circumstances, get in touch!

Members get access to Tendwell’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) through CharmHealth. There is an extensive online help library available here: https://www.charmhealth.com/resources/ehr-user-guide.html