Info

Location

Laurel Medical Associates (LMA) is located at 13635 Baltimore Avenue (Route 1), in the South Lakes Office Park complex directly across from the Fairfield Inn Hotel in Laurel, Maryland.

Contact Info: telephone (301) 497-0401, fax (888) 371-0437,  email: info@laurelmedicine.com

Social Media

Take this time to join us on Facebook (@LMAdoc) and Twitter (@laurelmedicine) so that we can keep you updated with important information. This information will include important news alerts, specials and emergency closings. Appointment reminders and other services will be added in the future to help us better serve you.

No Show Policy

If you are unable to make your appointment, please let the office know. There is a fee of fifty dollars if your appointment is not cancelled within 24 hours. To help avoid this problem Laurel Medical Associates will attempt to give a reminder call the day before your appointment.

Payment

Laurel Medical Associates accepts cash, Visa, Mastercard, American Express. We must collect your copay and any required payment at the time of service. There is a 50 dollar fee for missed appointments that are not cancelled within 24 hours. There is also a fee for returned checks.

Late Policy

Laurel Medical Associates has a 15 minute Late Policy. If you arrive more than 15 minutes after your scheduled appointment we reserve the right to have you reschedule your appointment so that others may not be delayed. Naturally, Laurel Medical Associates will see you as soon as possible if you are late for your appointment and make every attempt to accommodate you.

After Hour Coverage

Laurel Medical Associates provides 24 hour coverage and you will be referred to the answering service after hours. After hour calls are for emergent conditions only, all routine calls and concerns should be addressed during routine hours. In general, LMA encourages you to contact the office during normal business hours to avoid unnecessary calls after hours.

Procedures done at the office

We offer a variety of procedures at the office. When needed, you will be referred to another doctor  for some procedures and consultations.

Lab Tests

At times this will be done at the office, or LMA will have you report directly to a lab (Quest or LabCorp) and they can send test results directly to the office for review.

Telemedicine

To better serve you, Laurel Medical Associates now offers telephone and telemedicine appointments. These appointments are used when appropriate and at time will require a face to face evaluation when needed. This service while important and valuable may not always be covered by your insurance.

Hospital Follow Up

When ever you are in the hospital please let the office know. When following up from the hospital or emergency room please bring as much records as possible for review. In addition, when at the hospital let them know that you would like to send a copy of your records to our office. See above for our contact information.

Insurance Plans

Laurel Medical Associates participates with most major insurance plans. Some managed Medicaid programs we do not participate with. Currently, we do not participate with most Kaiser plans, Amerigroup and Americaid. For an up to date list please contact the office.

Laurel Medical Associates can still see you at the office if we do not participate with your insurance. You will be responsible for submitting your claim to your insurance for reimbursement in these cases if applicable. For all care in the office you are ultimately responsible for your bill and for giving us accurate information. If there are changes in your insurance please let us know immediately.

Phone Appointments

Laurel Medical Associates does offer convenient phone appointments for certain situations for a fee of 45 dollars. Of note, Laurel Medical Associates will schedule these, and have time to talk with you over the phone and make a plan as to best manage your concerns. An office evaluation, if needed will be needed to evaluate any new possible diagnosis, acute pain or any clinical situation that we believe requires a face to face appointment. This is intended to avoid making a diagnosis over the phone and to provide you the best care possible. In addition, legally there are limitations to practicing over the phone or providing telemedicine. Both are important and I believe inevitable but do have some inherent risk.

Caregivers and Family

Laurel Medical Associates understand that family and caregiver support is important for all of our patients. Laurel Medical Associates will need to communicate as best as possible with you to help care for your loved one. Please make sure that the office has any needed legal documentation that designates you as a Power of Attorney or guardian. This is especially important for those patients who are not able to speak for themselves.

Office Hours

Laurel Medical Associates is open daily from 9 am- 5pm. We do take lunch from 12-1. During this time we recommend you avoid calling the office so that the staff may have time for lunch. During high call volume times, your call may be delivered to a voice mail box and it should be returned as soon as possible. For all routine concerns, please use the mail box options on the voicemail system. This will help more efficiently process and respond to your needs. If needed call back and If appropriate consider sending an email. For all emergencies we recommend you call 911 immediately, do not call the office.

Patient Portal

MyHealthware is our main patient portal. We use it to communicate with you securely. We can communicate with nonurgent emails. It can also be used to send records and lab reports if needed. To use this system, you will need to provide an active email account. When we register the email with your account you should receive an invitation to join the portal.  You will receive an email from MyHealthware that will allow you to register. If you have problems entering your account or do not receive your initial email which should have your password information let the office know. We will first need to confirm that we have the correct email for you. Thank you for your patience as we implement this new program

We do use a second portal known as Updox which is also helpful. It is recommended that you use both and use the same ID and password.

Preparing for your first visit.

Please arrive 15 minutes before your first appointment. This will give you time to fill out health history information, Privacy forms and other important information. It is very important to bring your insurance card and identification information. Forms can be made available to you on this web page or can be emailed to you if possible to make your first appointment as pleasant and efficient as possible. Bring a copy of your medication list or medication bottles. Furthermore, it will be important for us to get information about your vaccine history and important procedures that you may have had to keep you healthy.

Feel free to bring any old records. If you do not have them we can assist you in completing forms to get your records. We can try to get records for you on your behalf but ultimately you are responsible for getting your records. We will likely scan needed records into our record system and return your records to you.

The following procedures can be performed in the office

1. Sleep study: home study to help diagnose sleep apnea
2. Spirometry: breathing test to help identify lung problems
3. Cryosurgery: procedure to help cure some skin problems
4. Hearing test
5. Ear irrigation: used to clean ears
6. Nerve conduction test: helps to identify hearing problems
7. ABI: helps to identify circulation problems
8. Digital retinal scan: takes pictures of your retina to look for problems with diabetes
9. Ultrasound of the heart and carotid: helps identify heart and vascular problems
10. Bioimpedance testing: this test will help determine your body composition which will tell you what percentage of muscle and fat you have and can help with your weight loss plans

Consultants will come into the office at times to perform these tests. We will check your insurance to give you as accurate information as possible to make sure these procedures are covered. In some cases we will need you to also confirm that these procedures are covered. At times a procedure may be applied to your deductible.