In an Emergency | Circle Of Friends

KNOW WHO TO CALL IN AN EMERGENCY

Calling 911

If you or a friend has a serious accident, or a sudden extreme illness – such as shortness of breath, chest pain, a strong reaction to a bee sting – please do not call another friend.

In an emergency situation, you should call “911” especially if you are in doubt about whether it is necessary or not.

Please be aware of the following:

There is no charge for making a “911” call if no one is taken by ambulance to town.
There no charge for “911” personnel to come and check on someone.
However, there will be a transportation charge if the ambulance takes a person to a hospital.
The emergency services actually ask that you not hesitate to call as they want to help – it is their job.
Be sure to tell the 911 operator whether you are calling from a land line or a cell phone and give them your actual street address.

It may be helpful to print and post this information by your home phone.

Most health insurance companies offer a 24/7 nurse hotline where you can talk to a nurse who can give you advice or refer you to an ER (emergency room) or Urgent Care.

Please call the phone number on the back of your health ID card to get current information about where to go. Do this ahead of time and write down the address so it is accessible when you can’t think properly or someone else has to act for you.

URGENT CARE

Urgent Care Centers are staffed with family, pediatric, ER and internal medicine doctors.

Use them when you can’t get to your regular doctor and it is NOT a life threatening emergency.

They are open nights and weekends, and cost about the same as a doctor’s visit.

They treat certain conditions right away that are not as severe as emergencies. These conditions are:

Sprains, strains
Cough, sore throat
Mild asthma
Nausea, diarrhea
Burning with urination
Rash, minor burns
Ear or sinus pain
X-rays
Minor fever, cold
Allergic reactions
Stitches
Eye pain or irritation
Animal bites
Minor headache
Back pain
Shots

Check to find the urgent care center in your plan.

The following are in different networks for different plans:

Sutter North Urgent Care: 444 Plumas Blvd, Yuba City, CA 95991 · (530) 749-3420 (old Anthem PPO plans). They don't accept MediCal. Only ER Hospitals do.
Regency Urgent Care: 1429 Colusa Hwy, Suite B, Yuba City, CA 95993 (530) 674-7000 (All Anthem Direct access and PPO plans except Medi-Cal and HMO)

EMERGENCY ROOM

The ER will usually cost more than an Urgent Care — unless you are admitted as a patient into the hospital, and then the ER fee is waived.

It also can take more time to be seen if those more serious than yourself are admitted before or after you.

But in a real emergency, this is the place to go.

EMERGENCY ROOM HOSPITALS

(Hospitals are usually covered in all networks in an emergency)

Rideout Memorial Hospital: 726 4th St, Marysville 95901
Oroville Hospital And Medical Center: 2767 Olive Hwy, Oroville, Ca 95966
Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital: 155 Glasson Way, Grass Valley, Ca 95945
Feather River Hospital: 5974 Pentz Rd, Paradise, Ca 95969

AMBULANCE

(Ambulances are usually covered in all networks in an emergency)

Check to find which ambulance companies are in your plan.

These are 2 which are in the direct access PPO plans.

MOUNTAIN LIFEFLIGHT: 530 251-2849 ground/air
SCHAEFER AMBULANCE SERVICE: 1-800-247-4455 ground/air

Ambulances generally take you to the nearest hospital appropriate for your situation. They may however be able to take you to a requested hospital over a closer hospital depending on the seriousness of your situation.

An ambulance for transport in a non-emergency setting will cost you much more out of network.

IN NETWORK DOCTORS

Go on-line or call the customer service on the back of your ID card to see who is in your net-work.

Get established with your doctor as a new patient.

The best thing is to communicate with your insurance carrier (Anthem or whomever) and always check with your doctor when you make an appointment to see if he or she is in your network as it can change (due to website errors or discontinuation of a contract with a provider).

Anthem has said if you cannot find a doctor in your network accepting new patients, or you cannot find someone in your in-network, you can “Add a network referral” to process your out of network claim at in-network rates. It will need to be reviewed in advance by calling the customer service telephone number on the back of your health ID card.