Why did I receive a bill from Summit Pathology?
Summit Pathology provides pathology and cytology (PAP screen) services for many physician offices throughout Colorado and Wyoming, as well as for surgical specimens from North Colorado Medical Center, McKee Medical Center, the North Colorado Surgery Center, and the Skyline Surgery Center.
We realize that getting a bill from Summit may be confusing. You may think, "But I never saw a pathologist when I was in the hospital!" or, "I saw my doctor in his office, and I don't know who this pathologist person is!" We are responsible for evaluating tissue samples that are taken from patients in both office and hospital settings, and both would lead to a bill for our services.
For specimens taken in your doctor's office (either biopsy samples or PAP screen samples), we have made an agreement with your doctor to provide a professional interpretation. We pick up the sample from the office, transport it to our laboratory, process it for evaluation, and render a diagnosis. For hospital and surgery center specimens, we are contracted to evaluate specimens removed either during surgery or during outpatient endoscopy procedures. Again, this involves transport, processing, and professional interpretation of your specimen.
You may also receive a bill from your doctor or hospital and the pathologist which all may appear to be for the same procedure. However, the pathologist's fee is not included in the bill from your doctor or hospital. The doctor's charge relates to the professional services provided during your office visit or surgical procedure; the hospital's charge relates to the technical laboratory processing of the specimen, tissue, blood or bodily fluids; and the pathology bill relates to the professional services associated with the interpretation or diagnosis of the specimen, tissue, blood, or bodily fluids. Each group will bill you directly for services it performed.(1)
For further questions, call us at (970) 461-6091 or contact Jill Lambert or Jill Hatfield.
(1)source for this paragraph: www.pathologybilling.com