Medical prior to interview

[Wishingonastar]

I have my interview coming up so I'm just trying to arrange the medical. I just contacted a few different doctors who provide medicals and the cost of the blood draw is A LOT more than I anticipated.

For those who have already had their medicals, what was the overall cost?

I have tried contacting different ones and the cheapest covers everything but you have to live in that county - so frustrating.

What does the blood draw actually consist of? Can I prove that I've already had certain blood draws for things in the past, or is it for communicable diseases that I may have contracted and a blood test showing negative from like 2 months ago wouldn't be enough?

Thank you

[Enub4]

I have read that around $300-$400, some people are able to get that cheaper I guess it all depends on where you live.

They need the blood work for TB and other diseases that they need to make sure you don't have at the time of the medical. You can read the from I-693 instructions to see what other diseases they test. There are some required vaccines per age group. If you have record for that you may save some money (of if you can do them cheaper if they charge extra for them).

[2018memcan]

I have my interview coming up so I'm just trying to arrange the medical. I just contacted a few different doctors who provide medicals and the cost of the blood draw is A LOT more than I anticipated.

For those who have already had their medicals, what was the overall cost?

I have tried contacting different ones and the cheapest covers everything but you have to live in that county - so frustrating.

What does the blood draw actually consist of? Can I prove that I've already had certain blood draws for things in the past, or is it for communicable diseases that I may have contracted and a blood test showing negative from like 2 months ago wouldn't be enough?

Thank you

It totally depends upon the place you go for the medical. Usually, if you don't have vaccination record then they ask you for vaccination and the bill can go around 800-1500$ per person. If you have any kind of insurance then they might charge blood reports and vaccination as the preventive medication to insurance (if you do not have any duplicate bill in the near past) and it can save you some money. But it all depends upon the doctor and clinic if they wish to take that route. Vaccination is not the requirement of the exam but doctors recommend it mostly. Physcial exam is 200-500 and no insurance cover that.

[yvc]

I have my interview coming up so I'm just trying to arrange the medical. I just contacted a few different doctors who provide medicals and the cost of the blood draw is A LOT more than I anticipated.

For those who have already had their medicals, what was the overall cost?

I have tried contacting different ones and the cheapest covers everything but you have to live in that county - so frustrating.

What does the blood draw actually consist of? Can I prove that I've already had certain blood draws for things in the past, or is it for communicable diseases that I may have contracted and a blood test showing negative from like 2 months ago wouldn't be enough?

Thank you

I think you can at least try and bring your medical record that you had done blood test 2 months ago and see if you can waive that exam. My total medical costed about $270 mainly because I only needed to do blood test and TB test and all other vaccinations were waived (I kept a record of all the vaccinations that I took). If you have a Health Saving account or Flexible Spending account, use that to pay the cost. It's better to use your after-tax income.

[BluePanther]

I have my interview coming up so I'm just trying to arrange the medical. I just contacted a few different doctors who provide medicals and the cost of the blood draw is A LOT more than I anticipated.

For those who have already had their medicals, what was the overall cost?

I have tried contacting different ones and the cheapest covers everything but you have to live in that county - so frustrating.

What does the blood draw actually consist of? Can I prove that I've already had certain blood draws for things in the past, or is it for communicable diseases that I may have contracted and a blood test showing negative from like 2 months ago wouldn't be enough?

Thank you

The lab test covers several blood tests (TB and certain STDs) and also they take urine for another STD test.
The costs of the medical exam vary wildly (between $150 and $500 per person) and potentially additional cost for missing immunizations and the lab tests.

It is definitely worth calling around various civil surgeons and inquire the cost of the three components of the medical (physical exam itself, immunizations and labwork). My total cost end of day was $300 per person.

Be careful on using the Health Savings Account or health insurance. I am not sure if you can use this for all of the cost.

[miiki]

We paid for the exam + paperwork $125. He told us what labs and vaccines were needed and we went to my husband?s regular doctor to do them (covered under insurance) and brought results and proof of vaccines back to the civil surgeon to finish the paperwork.

[BluePanther]

We paid for the exam + paperwork $125. He told us what labs and vaccines were needed and we went to my husband?s regular doctor to do them (covered under insurance) and brought results and proof of vaccines back to the civil surgeon to finish the paperwork.

Good deal for sure. That is the best price arrangement I have seen so far. I guess you are not in California ;-)

[yvc]

Be careful on using the Health Savings Account or health insurance. I am not sure if you can use this for all of the cost.

From the IRS Publication 502, physical examination is an eligible medical expense. "You don't have to be ill at the time of the examination." See link below. Search "Physical Examination". Therefore, it should be a qualified HSA or FSA expense. Again, this is a personal opinion, not legal advice.

https://www.irs.gov/publications/p502#en_US_2018_publink1000179002

[Wishingonastar]

Man your guys' medicals are so much cheaper than mine quoted. Unfortunately I do not have medical insurance as I don't have an SSN yet. We were quoted $120 for the initial appointment and $512 for bloods, and then any vaccinations on top of it. Seems extortionate!!

Is it correct that some vaccines are age related? I've looked on the CDC website and it says things like Rotavirus are not required in certain age groups if it was never given as a child. So might it be that the ones I haven't had I may not need anyway?

I also had my TB vaccination at school... so I have no proof of this other than a tick in my vaccination booklet and the classic BCG scar on my arm. I hope this is enough.. I'm not up for paying for a TB immunity test on top of this fee.

Last question, is the chest x-ray only applicable if you show signs of TB? From what I've read this appears to be the case but I'm just after clarification!

Thanks!

[yvc]

Man your guys' medicals are so much cheaper than mine quoted. Unfortunately I do not have medical insurance as I don't have an SSN yet. We were quoted $120 for the initial appointment and $512 for bloods, and then any vaccinations on top of it. Seems extortionate!!

Is it correct that some vaccines are age related? I've looked on the CDC website and it says things like Rotavirus are not required in certain age groups if it was never given as a child. So might it be that the ones I haven't had I may not need anyway?

I also had my TB vaccination at school... so I have no proof of this other than a tick in my vaccination booklet and the classic BCG scar on my arm. I hope this is enough.. I'm not up for paying for a TB immunity test on top of this fee.

Last question, is the chest x-ray only applicable if you show signs of TB? From what I've read this appears to be the case but I'm just after clarification!

Thanks!

The civil surgeon did not accept my medical insurance, not sure if it is the case for other places. I don't know about the vaccination part but maybe you can consult at least one or more doctors? Just to be sure that you are not spending unnecessary money. I don't remember having chest x-ray for the TB but they gave me TB vaccination again, even though I gave them all my vaccination record to prove that I had it in college. The surgeon told me that my TB test was expired so I had to retake it (never heard of that)... I took it anyway.

[quirkywombat]

Man your guys' medicals are so much cheaper than mine quoted. Unfortunately I do not have medical insurance as I don't have an SSN yet. We were quoted $120 for the initial appointment and $512 for bloods, and then any vaccinations on top of it. Seems extortionate!!

Is it correct that some vaccines are age related? I've looked on the CDC website and it says things like Rotavirus are not required in certain age groups if it was never given as a child. So might it be that the ones I haven't had I may not need anyway?

I also had my TB vaccination at school... so I have no proof of this other than a tick in my vaccination booklet and the classic BCG scar on my arm. I hope this is enough.. I'm not up for paying for a TB immunity test on top of this fee.

Last question, is the chest x-ray only applicable if you show signs of TB? From what I've read this appears to be the case but I'm just after clarification!

Thanks!

Yes the vaccinations are age-related, so if you don't fall into a certain age group, the civil surgeon should tick "Not Age Appropriate" (for example if you're 26 you would have Not Age Appropriate checked for rotavirus). They can still put down dates if you've received it, but they'll tick Not Age Appropriate anyway. Each line needs to have one entry, whether it be a check or a date. See: https://www.uscis.gov/policymanual/H...-Chapter9.html

And yep to the chest x-ray question.

Mine was $275. Insurance does not cover the flat fees charged by the civil surgeons, but insurance can cover vaccinations (such as the flu shot) if required. Annual physicals are typically covered by insurance (I opted out of one as I have a high deductible). What I did was call a bunch of places beforehand and ask what was included, what is covered, etc. The place I picked offered to let me go to CVS to do my flu shot if I wanted to.

[Wishingonastar]

The civil surgeon did not accept my medical insurance, not sure if it is the case for other places. I don't know about the vaccination part but maybe you can consult at least one or more doctors? Just to be sure that you are not spending unnecessary money. I don't remember having chest x-ray for the TB but they gave me TB vaccination again, even though I gave them all my vaccination record to prove that I had it in college. The surgeon told me that my TB test was expired so I had to retake it (never heard of that)... I took it anyway.

Ok thank you - that is really odd they gave it to you again?? Something doesn't seem quite right there. BCG doesn't expire as far as I'm aware.
I have called all the civil surgeons within a 2-3 hour radius and all are really expensive or $384 for everything but only if you live in that county! Ugh!

- - - Updated - - -

Yes the vaccinations are age-related, so if you don't fall into a certain age group, the civil surgeon should tick "Not Age Appropriate" (for example if you're 26 you would have Not Age Appropriate checked for rotavirus). They can still put down dates if you've received it, but they'll tick Not Age Appropriate anyway. Each line needs to have one entry, whether it be a check or a date. See: https://www.uscis.gov/policymanual/H...-Chapter9.html

And yep to the chest x-ray question.

Mine was $275. Insurance does not cover the flat fees charged by the civil surgeons, but insurance can cover vaccinations (such as the flu shot) if required. Annual physicals are typically covered by insurance (I opted out of one as I have a high deductible). What I did was call a bunch of places beforehand and ask what was included, what is covered, etc. The place I picked offered to let me go to CVS to do my flu shot if I wanted to.

Great thank you. From what I saw, I do not require a few of them due to not being age appropriate and all the others I've had apart from the flu jab and they told me that'll be $20. What would be great is if they accepted my recent syphillis etc. screening! Thank you for clarifying about the TB too!

[BluePanther]

Man your guys' medicals are so much cheaper than mine quoted. Unfortunately I do not have medical insurance as I don't have an SSN yet. We were quoted $120 for the initial appointment and $512 for bloods, and then any vaccinations on top of it. Seems extortionate!!

Is it correct that some vaccines are age related? I've looked on the CDC website and it says things like Rotavirus are not required in certain age groups if it was never given as a child. So might it be that the ones I haven't had I may not need anyway?

I also had my TB vaccination at school... so I have no proof of this other than a tick in my vaccination booklet and the classic BCG scar on my arm. I hope this is enough.. I'm not up for paying for a TB immunity test on top of this fee.

Last question, is the chest x-ray only applicable if you show signs of TB? From what I've read this appears to be the case but I'm just after clarification!

Thanks!

That sounds like an expensive lab, my bloodwork was $150. If time allows, perhaps worth calling for additional quotes or ask if they accept lab results from a different lab and see if you can find a better priced lab. On a side note, the TB is part of the bloodwork. I dont think you can avoid that one.

Immunizations are indeed age related, I only needed MMR, Tdap, Varicella and Flu shot. For Varicella they accepted my declaration that I had the disease as a child, but for MMR they could not accept it and I needed that shot. MMR is Mumps, Measles and Rubella.

[Wishingonastar]

That sounds like an expensive lab, my bloodwork was $150. If time allows, perhaps worth calling for additional quotes or ask if they accept lab results from a different lab and see if you can find a better priced lab. On a side note, the TB is part of the bloodwork. I dont think you can avoid that one.

Immunizations are indeed age related, I only needed MMR, Tdap, Varicella and Flu shot. For Varicella they accepted my declaration that I had the disease as a child, but for MMR they could not accept it and I needed that shot. MMR is Mumps, Measles and Rubella.

Oh wow - I'm starting to wonder if the receptionist quoted me the price for every single thing I might need, because it really does sound expensive and I don't know why. I'm sure my MIL told me in general conversation a while ago that this place was the cheapest for labs in the area too, weird. I am going there tomorrow so will enquire again.

That's great, I've already had MMR as a child, I had the Tdap recently while pregnant, Varicella I did have as a child too but all I have to prove it is a scar on my knee and a photo of me covered in pox hahaha. Wonder if they will accept that haha! I really just want to get this medical over and done with, it's causing me great stress!

[quirkywombat]

Oh wow - I'm starting to wonder if the receptionist quoted me the price for every single thing I might need, because it really does sound expensive and I don't know why. I'm sure my MIL told me in general conversation a while ago that this place was the cheapest for labs in the area too, weird. I am going there tomorrow so will enquire again.

That's great, I've already had MMR as a child, I had the Tdap recently while pregnant, Varicella I did have as a child too but all I have to prove it is a scar on my knee and a photo of me covered in pox hahaha. Wonder if they will accept that haha! I really just want to get this medical over and done with, it's causing me great stress!

For varicella they will be able to tell if you're immune from the blood test, and they'll write the date they drew your blood if the results come back showing you are immune. I do think insurance covers bloodwork, so some people may be getting the discounted quotes. You may be getting the complete out-of-pocket quote unfortunately! But definitely double check. I would ask why the labwork is so expensive