Keep your health in check and overall healthcare costs down with an annual preventive visit
As a kid, you probably went to the doctor each year for a checkup. The doc would take your temp, hit your knees with a little hammer, and make you squirm when looking in your ears. The best part: getting a sucker or Pokemon sticker at the end.
Today we call those appointments annual preventive visits and they carry a lot of weight in:
- Preventing illness, disease, and other health problems
- Living a healthier, better-quality life
- Lowering overall healthcare costs
The preventive visit lets your primary care provider (PCP) keep tabs on your overall wellness and hear your health concerns.
“Preventive care is one of the most important aspects of our jobs as physicians,” said Dr. Leann Kridelbaugh, Blue KC Medical Director. “For children and teens, preventive visits help ensure they are growing and developing normally. The recommended vaccinations your PCP administers for all ages prevent many serious diseases that can be life threatening. For adults, the screening exams detect potential serious health problems early when they are more easily treated.”
Everyone – young children, teens, adults, elderly – should have an annual preventive visit. It generally includes many routine preventive services, such as immunizations and necessary screenings, and is covered at 100%*.
Schedule your preventive visit
Contact your PCP to schedule your annual preventive visit. If you don’t have a PCP, don’t worry. You can find an in-network PCP in your neighborhood using the Find Care tool on your member portal. Visit MyBlueKC.com, select Find Care in the left column, then enter any of the following in the search bar: PCP, family medicine, internal medicine, general practice, pediatrician, or a specific provider name.
If you’re a Blue KC member enrolled in a plan with exclusive access to Spira Care Centers, schedule your $0** preventive visit at one of nine Spira Care Centers in the Kansas City metro area.
When you schedule your appointment, be sure to:
- Ask for preventive care screenings and tests that are 100% covered by your plan
- Ask if talking about non-preventive-care health problems during your appointment will lead to extra costs
*When you visit an in-network doctor or facility.
**Services must be completed at a Spira Care Center, and you must have a Blue KC plan with Spira Care.
