Frequently Asked Questions

1)    Do I need an appointment?

Yes, in most cases you will need to call our office to schedule an appointment.  Our Acute Care “walk-in” clinic located at the Huffman Mill Road office will accept patients without an appointment.  Other departments may be able to see you the same day you call in to our office.  They will let you know if you can be seen that day.

2)    Is your office open after normal business hours?

Yes.   The Acute Care “walk-in” clinic located at the 1234 Huffman Mill Road office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm, on Saturday from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, and on Sunday from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm.  They accept patients age 3 and older.

Patients of our Pediatrics department can see one of our Pediatricians to treat illnesses/injuries on Saturday from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm on Saturday and 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm on Sunday at the Elon office, but you must call in advance to get an appointment.

3)    Do the Kernodle Clinic physicians participate in my insurance network?

The physicians of Kernodle Clinic participate in most major insurance networks.  You can see list of insurance plans that include Kernodle Clinic physicians in their network on this website.

4)    How much do you charge for physician services?

We are not typically able to give a complete price for the services before the patient sees the physician.  We do not know in advance what kinds of services the physician will decide to provide after evaluating your condition.  For selected surgery and procedures we can provide an estimate but cannot guarantee that the estimate will be close to the actual fee.

5)    Why am I receiving a “Past Due” notice?

If you have received two (2) regular billing statements (green) requesting payment and have not responded, you will receive a past due notice for the amount requested on you last regular billing statement.

6)    How soon are appointments available?

The availability of appointments will vary from department to department and from physician to physician.  If you are an established patient and do not have a preference for a particular provider, then you may be able to be seen sooner than if you are new to the department or require a certain provider.

7)    Do I have to pay for services before I see the physician?

As required by insurance companies, we expect payment of “copayments” prior to seeing the physician.  We will typically bill you for coinsurance or deductible amounts after we receive payment from the insurance company.  There are circumstances when we will require a deposit (surgery or obstetric care) prior to the procedure/surgery, which would include the estimated amount of your deductible/coinsurance.  If you do not have insurance then you are expected to pay a minimal deposit before being seen by the physician.

8)   Can I be seen by a Kernodle Clinic physician if the physician is not part of my managed care insurance network?

Our physicians will provide services to patients covered by any insurance plans, even those that exclude Kernodle Clinic physicians from their network.  However, the patient is expected to pay for any out-of-network costs incurred according to their insurance benefit plan.  Please read your plan carefully so you know how much you will be expected to pay towards your deductible or coinsurance when obtaining services from an out-of-network physician.

9)   If Kernodle Clinic is not in my insurance network, how can I get Kernodle Clinic to be included in my insurance network?

Kernodle Clinic evaluates all insurance plans on the basis on their policies and procedures, payment policies, payment rates, and business reputation.  We do evaluate new plans to determine if they would be a good partner with Kernodle Clinic.

10)  If Kernodle Clinic files a claim for a charge that is not covered by my insurance company, will Kernodle Clinic change the code to a code that will be covered by my insurance company?

No.  We cannot change the codes just so the insurance company will pay the claim.  We have to follow national regulations on billing for physician services and our billing practices must be consistent with the documentation and services actually rendered by the physician. 

11)  Why am I getting a bill from LabCorp, since I only went to Kernodle Clinic?

Kernodle Clinic has an in-office clinical laboratory that provides testing for most lab tests your physician will order.  There are some tests, however, that Kernodle Clinic cannot provide.  For these tests we send the specimen to LabCorp and LabCorp will file your insurance.  If your insurance does not pay the balance in full then LabCorp will bill you for the balance due.

12)  Why am I getting a bill from Burlington Radiology related to my visit at Kernodle Clinic?

Many times the Kernodle Clinic physicians will send the x-rays to Burlington Radiology so the Radiologist can read and evaluate the x-rays.  In certain cases, a Radiologist is more qualified to read an x-ray than your physician at Kernodle Clinic.  If we send the x-ray to Burlington Radiology to be read, Burlington Radiology will generate a bill that can be sent to your insurance company.  If there is a balance due after the insurance company pays, then you will be billed for that balance by Burlington Radiology. 

13)  Is Kernodle Clinic owned by or is it a department of Alamance Regional Medical Center?

No.  Kernodle Clinic is a private physician-owned clinic and is not governed or owned by ARMC.

14)  Are Kernodle Clinic Internal Medicine physicians accepting new patients?

Most of our Internal Medicine physicians are NOT accepting “new” patients at this time.  You would need to call our office to see if any of our physicians are open to new patients as this can change from time to time.

15)  Where can I pay my bill?