In all aspects of our lives, money is a huge factor when it comes to decision making. Health care is no different, yet we all hate to talk about it. It’s uncomfortable and awkward. It’s not just about cost, it’s also about honesty, outcomes, transparency, and value. We understand. That’s why we have developed some policies that we want to share with you.
Fee Transparency
Our fees are based on the time and expense it takes to provide the service. While we are probably not the cheapest, we’re far from being luxury priced either. We try to avoid bundling fees unless it results in substantial savings to you. We would never hide a fee or add on hidden fees. For example, we don’t charge a “medical waste fee”. These are rarely quoted to the client but when added to every exam and injection fee, a “low-cost” exam and vaccination can easily exceed the price of our everyday fair fees. We won’t charge you a “medical waste fee,” a gas surcharge fee or any other surprise fees! Neither will we low-ball one fee to entice you in only to up-charge you somewhere else. That’s not fair!
Estimates
We try to give you a written estimate prior to every procedure and stick with it. If the procedure takes less time than we estimated, then we’ll reduce the fee accordingly. If you want an estimate for any procedure and didn’t get one, please ask!
Partnership
We believe that you ask us to help you provide veterinary care for your pet. We need you to be involved! Each treatment plan is individualized for the needs of each patient and owner. If you are not comfortable with any suggested treatment or fee, then we’ll work with you to arrive at a plan that will still provide good care that is affordable. We realize that modern veterinary care is not inexpensive. We always encourage discussing numbers as well as pets!
Conservative, Consistent, Considerate, Approach
Just because we have lots of wonderful diagnostic tools available to us doesn’t mean we have to use them on every case. In fact, we all come from rural backgrounds and take a rather conservative approach to medicine. We don’t rush in and run every test available on our own pets every time they get sick and we want to treat your pets as we do our own; and, treat you as we would a friend. After all, many of you already are. If you’re not, we want you to become one. Again, that’s why we need your help so that together we can make good decisions for your pet’s care.
No Charge Drop-Offs/ Hospitalizations
If you prefer to drop off your pet and leave her for the day for an exam or procedure, there is no day care fee. The same is true if your pet is still sleepy from an anesthetic procedure and you want her to stay that night with us until she’s feeling fine again. We want these visits to be stress-free for both of you!
Payment Options
Emergencies happen and can result in unforeseen expenses. We have all experienced these ourselves so we will work with you so that decisions do not have to be made based solely on financial considerations. We offer some in-clinic options as well as Care Credit, and Trupanion Insurance.
These are only a few of our cost saving measures. We try at all times to respect your time, money, and your furry friends! We sometimes don’t talk about money as often as we should because it’s not the most enjoyable part of our jobs. We’d rather just get on with helping your pet, but we all need to make sure we’re communicating about expenses. Please don’t be shy about asking questions or reminding us how we can help you provide the best possible care for your pet!
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