$0 Copay Preventative Services

By David Donovan, Independent Health

Fall is just around the corner, which means cold and flu season is not far behind.  As the old saying goes, "prevention is the best medicine."  Preventing illness begins with keeping up to date on shots and preventive screenings, which are now covered in full by most health plans.  For the past two years, Independent Health has offered our members preventive services with no copay, including flu shots.

Flu shots are available from your doctor.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now recommends that everyone 6 months of age or older be vaccinated annually against influenza.

It is important to receive a flu shot every year.  New flu vaccines are released every year to keep up with rapidly changing flu viruses. Because flu viruses can evolve so quickly, you may not be protected by last year's vaccine from this year's viruses.  It normally takes up to two weeks for someone to build immunity after receiving a flu shot. 

If you do end up with the flu or another viral infection, such as the common cold, antibiotics will not make you feel better and can contribute to antibiotic resistance.  Antibiotics are effective against bacterial infections only.  Your doctor can determine the type of infection you have and whether or not an antibiotic is necessary.

When prescribed an antibiotic, make sure you take all of the antibiotics prescribed to you, even if your symptoms are gone. Follow your doctor's and pharmacist's instructions carefully.  Take doses on schedule for the number of days indicated.  As always, if you have questions about antibiotics or any other medications, please speak to your doctor or pharmacist.

Preventing illness means staying up-to-date with your routine screenings.  It's important because these tests can find serious diseases early - when they're easier to treat.  For example, more and more Americans today are surviving cancer. This is largely due to early detection of the disease. The American Cancer Society says that the five-year survival rate for people with certain cancers, such as breast and colorectal, would rise to 95% if all Americans had early detection testing.

Important preventive services available with no copay are mammograms, cholesterol screenings, colonoscopies, immunizations, diabetes testing, high blood pressure screenings, and more.   Independent Health members will be covered in full as long as they receive these services from an in-network provider.  A full list is available at www.independenthealth.com.

Independent Health is committed to our members by providing them with the important tools they need to get healthy and stay healthy.