Appointments and Prescription Refills
Making an Appointment with Your
Cedars-Sinai Medical Group Physician
You should make an appointment with Cedars-Sinai Medical Group physicians by telephone.
If you are a member of an HMO, you might be required to have a referral before seeing most types of specialists. Please check with your primary care physician about a referral before contacting a specialist.
When you call please be prepared to provide your:
- Date of birth
- Insurance medical record number as listed on your insurance card
- Social security number
The person assisting you will ask a few brief questions about the type of care you need and work with you to find the appointment time that best fits your schedule.
Referral to a Specialist
The health and well-being of our patients is our primary concern, so referrals to specialists are made when it is appropriate to your care. If your insurance requires a referral from your physician to see a specialist and if your physician decides it is medically necessary, it may take up to five working days to process that request. Of course, referrals with a medical urgency will be processed more quickly.
Our Utilization Management Policy and Procedures spell out the criteria used in referral decisions, which include determination of appropriateness of care and service, and of insurance coverage. Our physicians and staff members are not encouraged or rewarded, financially or otherwise, for issuing denials. If you would like a copy of this document, please contact us at (800)700-6424.
Obtaining a New Prescription or Refilling a Current Prescription
New Prescriptions
Most physicians will ask to see you before providing a new prescription. Please call your physician's office directly and explain your need.Refilling Prescriptions
It is important for you to keep taking your prescription regularly. Therefore, we ask you to begin the process of refilling your prescription several days before you run out of medication.Let your pharmacist do your work for you! The fastest way to get a prescription refill is to contact your local pharmacy with your request and the physician's name and telephone number. The pharmacist will contact the physician directly with the appropriate information. You can then pick up your prescription at the designated time. Please note that in certain cases, the physician will ask to see you before providing a refill.
If you want to speak to the physician about your prescription before refilling it, please call the physician's office. Most likely, the physician will be seeing patients and he or she might not be able to speak to you that moment. Please leave your name, the name of the prescription drug, and telephone numbers where the physician can reach you. Sometimes physicians need to call after regular business hours, so please let the receptionist know where you will be after 5 p.m.
