FAQ's

Prior to your initial visit, it is required that you download, complete and return your initial patient documents. You will find the initial documents under the Resources tab at the top of this page under Forms. Please download the Doctor For Life: Patient Packet and complete. After completion, please follow the directions located on the first page for returning the document prior to your visit. This information MUST be received prior to finalizing your initial visit appointment time. By following this short process, you will reduce your initial visit time significantly.

On your first visit you will meet with a physician, recount your medical history and other information and have a physical exam. Please bring a list of any medications you are taking, including over-the-counter and herbal preparations. A family member or caregiver is always welcome to come with you. Be advised that your physician may ask very personal questions. It is important that you answer these questions honestly and fully as the answers may have important implications for your care. Please arrive well ahead of time so that you can complete registration, turn in your identification and insurance cards. Insurance cards and a photo identification are required for your visit. After registration, you can proceed to the lobby and wait to be called by the staff.

Internal Medicine physicians are also known as Internists, or Doctors for Adults. Internists are trained in recognizing and treating complex medical problems. They frequently serve as primary care physicians, but internal medicine is also a prerequisite for sub-specialty training in fields such as cardiology, endocrinology, or obesity medicine. For more information on internal medicine please visit: www.doctorsforadults.com

During your initial visit to DOCTOR FOR LIFE, you can expect to spend approximately 1.5 to 2 hours with us. Upon arrival, you will complete a brief registration, take part in a thorough consultation (this may take place over several visits), set milestones and ultimate goals, and get started! After the consultation, if prescribed by the physician, you may want to get started right away with our meal replacement and B12/Lipotropic injection programs like many of our clients do.

When you start the program, we can use labs that have been done within the past three months, or labs that get done within the first 30 days of starting our program. This lab work can be done with your regular physician, a hospital or at DOCTOR FOR LIFE for an affordable fee. Your initial visit includes a standard lab panel as ordered by our physicians. The labs assess your liver function, kidney function, blood glucose (or “blood sugar”), electrolytes, nutritional status, anemia risk, lipid panel (i.e., total cholesterol, “good” cholesterol, and “bad” cholesterol), and thyroid hormone levels based on which lab testing package you get. If we don’t have these after a certain period of time while in the program, we reserve the right to not have you as a client at DOCTOR FOR LIFE.

The cost of this initial visit is $290 and includes: Provider Consultation, body composition analysis, electrocardiogram, blood testing for lipid panel, kidney function, liver function, blood sugar and Electrolytes. We also include a dose of Lipo-Mix/Complex B vitamins Intramuscular shot. If you only want appetite suppressants, then you pay for the initial visit and $85 for monthly follow up visits. However, for the best result, expect to pay for the visit fees plus meal replacements which will range from $115 to $225 per week all based on the caloric prescription from the physicians. You will be on your way to losing pounds and inches as well as achieving a healthier lifestyle.

Those clients who come in for weekly weigh-ins and behavioral counseling do much better than those who come in less frequently, and we therefore strongly encourage our clients to come in weekly. These weekly sessions are $75 and we continue to teach and guide you, advise you, celebrate with you, encourage you, and hold you accountable. We become your family, and you are considered as part of the DOCTOR FOR LIFE family. For your visits when appetite suppressants need to be refilled, the cost of this visit is $75 plus the cost of your selected appetite suppressants and other products and/or services. Oftentimes, we have great specials for our “Full” clients, making our fees less.

At DOCTOR FOR LIFE, appetite suppressants may be suggested as part of your individualized weight loss program. We employ FDA approved prescription appetite suppressants such as Qsymia, Belviq, Contrave, and Adipex, as well as all-natural appetite suppressants that we have found to be helpful in our practice such as Garcinia Cambogia. We do not offer appetite suppressants that do not make medical sense, or where the risks outweigh benefits.

Appetite suppressants are just one tool in our large toolbox, and are not right for everyone. At DOCTOR FOR LIFE, we provide you with the tools to make a total lifestyle change. In fact, we believe we offer the most comprehensive weight management solution around! We offer you a personalized health team that can consists of a physician and counsellor. You can obtain lab work, have delicious all-natural foods and protein meal replacements, and benefit from numerous all-natural, supplements and injections like Methyl B-12 and Lipotropic C (Fat Burner)!

At DOCTOR FOR LIFE, we know how to successfully reach your weight loss goals in a very quick and safe way. If you completely follow our FULL program without exception, you can expect to lose 10 percent of your current weight every 5-7 weeks! You can expect to lose 2-10 pounds the first week and then 3-5 pounds on average per week after that, if you have a lot of pounds to lose initially. If you have 10 pounds or 110 pounds to lose, DOCTOR FOR LIFE can help you achieve goals in an affordable and safe way. If you only get the injections and don’t follow a good weight loss program such as ours, you may experience mostly the loss of inches and not necessarily loss of pounds. We do not promote the use of appetite suppressants alone for long-term, sustainable weight loss and health maintenance.

At DOCTOR FOR LIFE, we value exercise and especially cardio because it is good for your heart, for weight loss, for stress relief, and for your bones and joints when done properly with the proper nutrition, rest, and guidance. For this reason, we incorporate exercise into our program for effective long-term results and a better lifestyle. During your consultation, you will be instructed on how to get the most out of your cardio routine at a high level with general instructions.

Yes, you can. We are proud of the fact that we have a structured program that allows for flexibility and the creation of new, healthy behavioral changes and habits. Our protein meal replacements provide the structure, while you eat regular foods from our food lists, providing the flexibility. We are happy to have teamed up with chefs who can help you with meal plans.

Prior to your visit, you may call our office to talk to our Weight Management Coordinators and they can answer any additional questions you may have about our programs. If you would like to schedule an initial visit, please follow the instructions below to better facilitate your visit with DOCTOR FOR LIFE.

Prior to your initial visit, it is required that you download, complete and return your initial patient documents. You will find the initial documents under the Resources tab at the top of this page under Forms. Please download the following and complete:

1. Doctor For Life: Patient Packet

2. Doctor For Life: Credit Card Authorization

3. Doctor For Life: New Patient Weight History Questionnaire

After completion, please follow the directions located on the first page for returning the document prior to your visit. Once the documents are returned, our staff will call to set up your initial appointment time. This information MUST be received prior to finalizing your initial visit appointment time. By following this short process, you will reduce your initial visit time significantly.

There are physicians of different specialties who approach weight loss from different angles.

Briefly, here is what separates us:

1. Our lead physician has a certification from the American Board of Obesity Medicine, as well as the American Board of Internal Medicine.

2. The clinic was part of a study that demonstrated long-term success of its weight loss program.*

3. Our dedication to improving the quality of life of our patients goes far beyond making weight loss a part of our practice; it has become a focus of our practice.

4. We can achieve success without invasive procedures.

*Outcomes from a Medical Weight Loss Program: Primary Care Clinics versus Weight Loss Clinics, William C. Haas, American Journal of Medicine, The American Journal of Medicine (2012) 125, 603.e7-603.e11

At this time, we do not accept insurance for Weight Management programs. Our programs, injections and products are designed to be very affordable. We accept cash, most credit cards, and debit cards. We do not accept checks.

The Doctor For Life Internal Medicine practice is in network with many insurance plans, government health programs and managed care networks. We bill your insurance provider for each visit, and you cover the co-payment or deductible. The amount that you owe depends on the specific health insurance plan you have. If you have any questions, call the number on your insurance card to learn more about your coverage. For your co-payment or for those who prefer to pay out-of-pocket, we accept cash, debit and credit cards.

For members with high deductible PPO plans and/or HSAs, you may prefer to pay for the visit out-of-pocket.

For those with an HMO plan, it’s important for you to call your health plan (phone number on your insurance card) before your first visit and select one of our physicians as your PCP. This will reduce any insurance hassles for you later on and allow us to make any referrals and order tests and prescriptions on your behalf.

Please call our office to confirm if your particular plan is accepted.

Many of the questions we ask are either required by your insurance company or requested to ensure that we have the most accurate information on file. This information allows us to satisfy the requirements of your insurance company and to file your claim with little or no involvement on your behalf. Certain questions are mandated by the federal agency of CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services).

In keeping with the terms of your agreement with your insurance company, as well as the agreement between the insurance company and our office, it is our practice to request that co-payments and deductibles be paid on the day of service.

We accept payment by cash, VISA®, Mastercard®, American Express® and Discover®.

Registration and Billing are committed to providing excellent customer service and require team members to pledge their commitment to this goal. If at any time you have questions or comments regarding your insurance coverage or your bill, please contact our Billing department at (864) 640-0009 during business hours: (Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.).

For your privacy, we need verbal or written authorization from you, the patient, if someone other than you is requesting information on your account.

Every month, you’ll receive a statement that lists what your insurance company still owes and what you owe. Statements continue until all payments are made or the outstanding balance is transferred to collections. Statements are mailed to the guarantor or responsible party listed on your account.

Doctor For Life uses five levels to describe the time and complexity of physician visits, with Level 1 being the lowest and Level 5 being the highest.

Health plans are based on you having a primary care provider (PCP). If you didn’t already select a PCP when you enrolled, you’ll want to select one right away. If our provider is not the PCP assigned to you, your claims will be paid at the out-of-network level, which means you’ll pay more for services or not covered at all. This is the patient’s responsibility to have the correct PCP prior to service.

The Doctor For Life Internal Medicine practice is in network with many insurance plans, government health programs and managed care networks. We bill your insurance provider for each visit, and you cover the co-payment or deductible. The amount that you owe depends on the specific health insurance plan you have. If you have any questions, call the number on your insurance card to learn more about your coverage. For your co-payment or for those who prefer to pay out-of-pocket, we accept cash, debit and credit cards.

For members with high deductible PPO plans and/or HSAs, you may prefer to pay for the visit out-of-pocket.

For those with an HMO plan, it’s important for you to call your health plan (phone number on your insurance card) before your first visit and select one of our physicians as your PCP. This will reduce any insurance hassles for you later on and allow us to make any referrals and order tests and prescriptions on your behalf.

Please call our office to confirm if your particular plan is accepted.

“Adjustment” refers to the portion of your bill that your doctor has contractually agreed not to charge you.

Beneficiary: A person who receives benefits of any insurance plan or policy.

Claim: A request for payment for services submitted by the provider.

Coinsurance: A specified percentage of covered expenses which the insurance carrier requires the beneficiary to pay toward eligible medical bills.

Co-pay or Co-payment: A specific set dollar amount contracted between the insurance company and the beneficiary to be paid prior to any services rendered.

Covered Services: Services for which an insurance policy will pay.

Deductible: A specified dollar amount of medical expenses which the beneficiary must pay before an insurance policy will pay.

Guarantor: The guarantor is the person legally responsible for charges incurred.

Explanation of Benefits (EOB): A statement from an insurance company showing the processing of a claim.

Medically Necessary: Treatments or services that insurance policies will pay for as defined in the contract.

Non-Covered Services: Services for which an insurance policy will not provide payment. These services are to be paid by the patient at the time of service.

Pre-Certification/Authorization: A service-specific requirement that your insurance company’s approval be obtained before a medical service is provided.

Provider: A person or organization that provides medical services.

Yes, your teenager can experience great benefits from our program, and these benefits will last a lifetime but these are determined on a one on one basis as to acceptance into our programs. Overweight and obesity is now an epidemic with our children. In fact, a third of all teenagers are either overweight or obese. For teens accepted into our programs, we advise them to do our entire program with physician involvement. In addition, we strongly encourage parental involvement as well. Most parents and their children find this to be a great bonding experience that is fun and rewarding.

We like to keep things fresh at DOCTOR FOR LIFE. This is our method of keeping everything affordable for our current and future patients because we fully understand that times may be financially challenging. Our mission is to improve the health of our patients and our communities, and we don’t want our prices preventing us from doing this.

Our mission at DOCTOR FOR LIFE has always been to be your only destination for those who want to lose weight quickly and in time for your big event. You only have to show up, tell us your goals and timeframe, and let your motivation go to work within our structured system. We celebrate life! Therefore, we celebrate birthdays! On your next birthday, if you are a client, come into one our office along with your official driver’s license and get a FREE B-12 injection on us!

If you just had a baby, this is the best time to come to DOCTOR FOR LIFE so that we can help “Mother Nature” restore you to your healthy goal weight quickly and safely. Remember, please tell us if you plan to breastfeed while in our program.

DOCTOR FOR LIFE can help with any health & wellness initiative regardless. From health screenings and seminars, to our full weight-management program, DOCTOR FOR LIFE offers the health solution that beats the competition in results and price.

First, we sincerely apologize to you, if you find it difficult to contact us via phone. We continue to make every attempt to enhance your experience with us. Please make sure that you are trying to reach us during regular business hours and make sure that you listen carefully to the prompts and press choices as instructed to do so. If you have done everything correctly, and we are not answering, then we must be on the phone with other callers or busy providing quality service to clients within our location. To ease our overwhelming telephone burden, it is now possible for you to make an appointment online from your computer, laptop, tablet, or smart phone! Because we are growing and great results are generating business, we continue to hire people to handle your questions and needs over the phone. We apologize for any inconvenience and truly appreciate your patience. As a last resort, you can contact us through this website’s “Contact Us” form or by leaving a voicemail message.