(San Bernardino, Calif.) –New federal regulations require new private health plans taking effect on or after Sept. 23, 2010 to cover most preventative medical services without co-payments or other fees.
The United States departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury issued these new regulations recently. The new rules will provide for free access to preventative services such as blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol tests; many cancer screenings; routine vaccinations; pre-natal care; and regular wellness visits.
That’s good news to Dr. Albert Arteaga, CEO and founder of LaSalle Medical Associates. For more than 25 years, Dr. Arteaga has advocated making going to the doctor no more intimidating than going to the grocery store.
“People should be able to come see the doctor before they get sick,” Dr. Arteaga said. “We want to make sure we catch things as early as we can so that we can start interventions before they cause serious health problems.
One of the United States’ most well-known physicians, Dr. Jill Biden (wife of Vice President Joe Biden) also sees making preventive services affordable to all as a necessity.
“One of the best ways to improve the quality of life – and control health care costs – is to prevent illness in the first place,” said Dr. Biden, who announced these regulations for the three federal departments that created them. “Focusing on prevention and early treatment makes more sense than trying to play catch-up with a potentially deadly disease.”
About LaSalle Medical Associates
LaSalle Medical Associates, Inc., operates four clinics employing more than 120 dedicated healthcare professionals, treating children, adults, and seniors in San Bernardino County. LaSalle’s patients are primarily served by Medi-Cal and they also accept Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Molina, Care 1st, Health Net and Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP). LaSalle’s clinics are at 17577 Arrow Blvd. in Fontana, 16455 Main St. in Hesperia and 1505 West 17th St. and 565 N. Mt. Vernon Ave. in San Bernardino.
LaSalle Medical Associates, Inc., is also an Independent Practice Association (IPA) of independently contracted doctors, hospitals and clinics, delivering high quality care to more than 245,000 patients in Fresno, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Joaquin and Tulare Counties.
LaSalle’s IPA members in the Inland Empire include: LaSalle Medical Associates, Arrowhead Orthopedics, Arther Medical Group, Rancho Medical Group, Rancho Paseo Medical Group, Alessandro Medical Group Banning Medical Group, and San Bernardino Urological Associates. Hospital affiliations include: Rancho Springs Medical Center, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Community Hospital of San Bernardino, St. Bernadine Medical Center, Mountains Community Hospital, Redland Community Hospital, Loma Linda University Medical Center, Corona Regional Medical Center, Riverside County Medical Center, Parkview Community Hospital.