Office Hours, Insurance Participation & Appointments:
Office Hours: (we are closed 12:30pm-1:30pm for lunch daily)
We participate with most insurance plans including Medicare, Alameda Alliance, PPO plans, Hill Physicians etc. Please feel free to call our office for questions regarding
your insurance coverage.
A new patient appointment generally runs between 30-40 minutes and a follow up appointment runs for 10-20 minutes depending upon the complexity of your
medical conditions. As there are many medical conditions associated with the various types of arthritis, a complete history and physical exam is required at the first
visit. Our office would greatly appreciate you bringing copies of any recent lab work, x-rays, CT or MRI reports or any other tests performed by your primary care
physician or orthopedic surgeon to your new patient appointment as this will allow for a more comprehensive evaluation and treatment plan. The more we know about
all of your medical conditions, the better we will be able to help you manage your pain and arthritis.
In order to prevent delays in the office, we would ask that you arrive 20-30 minutes PRIOR to your new patient appointment to fill out insurance and health history paper
work. This will allow our office to address your health concerns in a timely manner. If you are running late for your appointment, and if you do not mind waiting, we will try
to accommodate you if you would still like to be seen that day, although there will usually be a wait. You can also be rescheduled for another follow up appointment.
- Monday 8AM- 5PM
Tuesday 8AM- 5:30PM
Wednesday 8AM - 3PM
Thursday 8AM - 5PM
Friday 8AM - 4PM
We participate with most insurance plans including Medicare, Alameda Alliance, PPO plans, Hill Physicians etc. Please feel free to call our office for questions regarding
your insurance coverage.
A new patient appointment generally runs between 30-40 minutes and a follow up appointment runs for 10-20 minutes depending upon the complexity of your
medical conditions. As there are many medical conditions associated with the various types of arthritis, a complete history and physical exam is required at the first
visit. Our office would greatly appreciate you bringing copies of any recent lab work, x-rays, CT or MRI reports or any other tests performed by your primary care
physician or orthopedic surgeon to your new patient appointment as this will allow for a more comprehensive evaluation and treatment plan. The more we know about
all of your medical conditions, the better we will be able to help you manage your pain and arthritis.
In order to prevent delays in the office, we would ask that you arrive 20-30 minutes PRIOR to your new patient appointment to fill out insurance and health history paper
work. This will allow our office to address your health concerns in a timely manner. If you are running late for your appointment, and if you do not mind waiting, we will try
to accommodate you if you would still like to be seen that day, although there will usually be a wait. You can also be rescheduled for another follow up appointment.
Payment Policy: (Please review our updated Financial Policy here)
Due to unpredictable delays in reimbursement from different insurance providers, co-pays, unmet deductibles are expected at the time of your visit. As a courtesy to you,
our office will bill your insurance for the services provided at our office. Your insurance carrier may NOT pay for the entire fee and you will be responsible for the balance.
You may pay by cash, check, credit cards. Co-pays are due PRIOR to seeing the doctor.
Please double check with your insurance provider to see if an authorization is required for your new patient appointment. If you have Hills Physicians etc YOU WILL
NEED AN AUTHORIZATION from your Primary Care Physician (PCP) before seeing our physician here. If you are seen without an authorization, you will be responsible
for your entire bill. If you have any questions regarding your office statement, please call 510-791-1300.
Patient’s Responsibilities:
All office visits are BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. In cases of “arthritis flares” or emergencies, please call our office first for availability. Walk in patients without an
appointment will be screened for urgency and scheduled appropriately depending upon availability. If you must cancel or re-schedule an appointment, please kindly
give 24 hour notice, or let us know as soon as possible so that other patients can be scheduled.
Phone calls to discuss routine problems or prescription refills are handled during regular business office hours. Please note that our office hours may change without
notice for holidays, medical conferences or unforeseen circumstances and thus it is highly recommended to have your prescriptions refilled at your follow up
appointments. Patients on narcotic medications for pain will need to physically pick up a prescription refill for we are not permitted to “call in” refills after office hours or
weekend. Please plan accordingly for refills of your pain medications.
The results of lab work and imaging (X-rays, MRI, bone density testing) will be reviewed with you at your follow up appointment. Please do your lab work and imaging
studies at least one week prior to your follow up appointment to ensure that the results have been reported to our doctors before your scheduled follow up
appointment. In the event that you are unable to have your tests done one week prior to your appointment, you may either re-schedule your appointment or we will call for
the results at your appointment time. If there is a “CRITICAL RESULT,” we will call you as soon as possible to reschedule your appointment earlier, otherwise...
In cases of an emergency, please check with your primary care physician first as they will know about all of your medical conditions. Dr Shibuya/Dr Elias is always
available to your primary care physician if they need further assistance. If you are unable to contact your primary care physician, go to the nearest emergency room/
Urgent Careand if needed, the ER / Urgent Care physician will contact our office.
Please report any problems you have with medications or treatment as different people react differently. It is possible for us to help to manage your care only if you tell
our office about difficulties you are having, if medications are ineffective or causing discomfort. Please feel free to inform the doctors if you are having any difficulties with
him or office staff as we want to provide the best care possible and can only do this with your input.
Patient Educational Resources:
Our office believes that an informed patient is a healthier and happier patient. In order to foster patient self education, we recommends the following websites for
arthritis related issues.
Due to unpredictable delays in reimbursement from different insurance providers, co-pays, unmet deductibles are expected at the time of your visit. As a courtesy to you,
our office will bill your insurance for the services provided at our office. Your insurance carrier may NOT pay for the entire fee and you will be responsible for the balance.
You may pay by cash, check, credit cards. Co-pays are due PRIOR to seeing the doctor.
Please double check with your insurance provider to see if an authorization is required for your new patient appointment. If you have Hills Physicians etc YOU WILL
NEED AN AUTHORIZATION from your Primary Care Physician (PCP) before seeing our physician here. If you are seen without an authorization, you will be responsible
for your entire bill. If you have any questions regarding your office statement, please call 510-791-1300.
Patient’s Responsibilities:
All office visits are BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. In cases of “arthritis flares” or emergencies, please call our office first for availability. Walk in patients without an
appointment will be screened for urgency and scheduled appropriately depending upon availability. If you must cancel or re-schedule an appointment, please kindly
give 24 hour notice, or let us know as soon as possible so that other patients can be scheduled.
Phone calls to discuss routine problems or prescription refills are handled during regular business office hours. Please note that our office hours may change without
notice for holidays, medical conferences or unforeseen circumstances and thus it is highly recommended to have your prescriptions refilled at your follow up
appointments. Patients on narcotic medications for pain will need to physically pick up a prescription refill for we are not permitted to “call in” refills after office hours or
weekend. Please plan accordingly for refills of your pain medications.
The results of lab work and imaging (X-rays, MRI, bone density testing) will be reviewed with you at your follow up appointment. Please do your lab work and imaging
studies at least one week prior to your follow up appointment to ensure that the results have been reported to our doctors before your scheduled follow up
appointment. In the event that you are unable to have your tests done one week prior to your appointment, you may either re-schedule your appointment or we will call for
the results at your appointment time. If there is a “CRITICAL RESULT,” we will call you as soon as possible to reschedule your appointment earlier, otherwise...
In cases of an emergency, please check with your primary care physician first as they will know about all of your medical conditions. Dr Shibuya/Dr Elias is always
available to your primary care physician if they need further assistance. If you are unable to contact your primary care physician, go to the nearest emergency room/
Urgent Careand if needed, the ER / Urgent Care physician will contact our office.
Please report any problems you have with medications or treatment as different people react differently. It is possible for us to help to manage your care only if you tell
our office about difficulties you are having, if medications are ineffective or causing discomfort. Please feel free to inform the doctors if you are having any difficulties with
him or office staff as we want to provide the best care possible and can only do this with your input.
Patient Educational Resources:
Our office believes that an informed patient is a healthier and happier patient. In order to foster patient self education, we recommends the following websites for
arthritis related issues.
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| Fremont Rheumatology Arthritis, Osteoporosis, and Auto-Immune Diseases Barry Shibuya M.D. and Christine Elias M.D. |