Paying For Services at Gannett

Gannett staff will work with you to make paying for your health care as convenient, clear, and confidential as possible.

This page covers:

Options for paying your bill 
Using health insurance (including Medicaid and Medicare) 
Keeping your health care bills (and care) confidential 
Where to go with your questions, concerns, and needs for financial assistance

You may also be interested in reading Frequently Asked Questions about bills.

Options for paying your bill

Cash, check, bursar charge, credit card

Payment is due at time of service and can be paid by personal check or cash, bursar charge (students only, and only during the academic year) or credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or Discover). Upon request, the Billing Office will provide you with receipts that you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. (Due to credit card security regulations, we cannot store card information for future use.)

Automatic bursar billing (STUDENTS ONLY)

Gannett student visit charges will be posted to your bursar bill, unless you instruct us not to. For your convenience, you may leave after any appointment without stopping to see a cashier. Your charges will appear on your bursar bill with a generic description (such as “Gannett student user fee,” “pharmacy charges,” “medical laboratory) that will not reveal any confidential health information.

Checkout with cashier

All non-student patients and students who prefer that charges not be applied to their bursar bill should checkout with a cashier to:

• Pay with cash, personal check, or credit card.
  When the cashier window is not open, please complete the “Self-Serve Cashier” card located on the wall between the Pharmacy and the Cashier window.
  
• Receive a copy of your bill (lab test charges may not be available for several days). This bill will be suitable for submission to your insurance company for reimbursement.
• Arrange for Gannett to bill your insurance directly, if your insurance is one we participate with (see “Using Health Insurance” below).

Using health insurance

Gannett will submit your claims directly if you are insured by:

• Cornell University Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP), administered by Aetna Student Health
• Cornell Athletic Injury Insurance (co-pay only)
• HealthNow
• Aetna Life Insurance Company
• United Health Care/The Empire Plan (not Blue Cross/Blue Shield)  

Please make sure we have a copy of your insurance card.

Prescriptions:

The Gannett Pharmacy has established connections with many prescription plans. Please see the pharmacy pages for more information.

If you have private insurance:

Cornellians have over 1700 different types of health insurance, so we are unable to submit claims directly for students with private insurance. But we’d like to do what we can to make it easy for you to submit your own receipts for reimbursement.

• At the end of each visit (or any time after a visit), please go to the Gannett Cashier or Billing Office to request a receipt for services. We will give you a detailed receipt that includes the information insurance companies require to process requests for reimbursement.
• Send the receipt to your insurance company for reimbursement.
• If you prefer to have the receipt sent to your parent or other family member, please let us know. We will be happy to send the receipt for you. For your protection, this is never done automatically: we must have your permission after each visit to release confidential information about your health care. Insurance companies require receipts reflecting specific diagnostic information in order to process requests for reimbursement.
• Please be aware that the $10 Gannett Student Visit Charge is not covered under most insurance policies, and some may not cover lab work, x-rays, or other procedures performed at Gannett.
  

If you have Medicaid:

Gannett is not able to bill directly to Medicaid, but we can help connect you to providers who can. If you need lab tests, x-rays, or other special procedures, please let your clinician know so we can make arrangements for you to have them done at the hospital. You will be responsible for charges for services done at Gannett.

If you have Medicare:

Because of changes in the Medicare claims system, Gannett is no longer able to submit claims to Medicare, but we can help connect you to providers who can. If you have Medicare (primary or secondary), you will be responsible for charges for services done at Gannett.

Keeping your bills (and care) confidential

We want you to feel comfortable seeking the care you need without worrying about privacy issues.

Your health care information at Gannett is confidential. If you ever have any concerns about whether something confidential may get into the wrong hands, please speak to your health care provider. Gannett’s Billing Department can help you make choices about your bills to protect your confidentiality. You can even call ahead if you’d like: 255-7492. We’re here to help.

We will not release medical information related to your Gannett visits without your permission.

If you want the support of a parent, partner, spouse, family member, or friend to deal with health care concerns or expenses, we will be happy to share billing and/or other information. For your protection, this is never done automatically: we must have your permission after each visit to release confidential infomration about your health care, including health care expenses. For your protection, this is never done automatically: we must have your permission after each visit to release confidential information about your health care, including health care expenses.

If you want someone else to have access to all of your billing information, New York State law requires that you file your written permission with the Billing Office annually.

The Gannett bill you obtain from a cashier may contain details about your visits.

If you’ve had a visit or procedure that you would like to keep to yourself, look closely at your statement before passing it on to anyone else. The language may not be specific, but the “diagnostic code” provides the insurance company with information they need to pay or reimburse expenses.

If you have two (or more) visits in the same billing period they will appear on the same statement.

If you settle a bill for a confidential visit (for example, a counseling appointment, pregnancy test, or STI check) while at Gannett, but then a week later have a bill sent home for another visit (like a sinus infection or ankle sprain), that first paid visit will show up on that statement.

Financial hardship

Inability to pay should never be a barrier to receiving the health care you need. If you have concerns about expenses related to medical or mental health care, please discuss them with a Gannett health care provider or member of our Billing Office staff before or during your visit to Gannett. Staff members can help you consider your options, extend payment, access financial assistance, or make other special arrangements.