Paying your doctor an annual visit for a physical exam may help in monitoring if you have any sign of disease or treatable medical condition. Though it would not be able to diagnose a particular problem, a physical exam allows you to consult your physician about complaints and concerns related to your health. Your doctor, in turn, would provide counsel and recommendations that would help you.
The physical exam, as it’s a routine visit, would oblige you to pay an annual fee. The yearly expenses, though, would not be too much of a burden if you have insurance. Most of the time, the insurance company would pay for most of the fees, and in some cases, would even cover all costs.
On the other hand, a physical exam, not to mention an annual exam, would cost you some money if you have no insurance company to back you up. With that said, exactly how much is a physical without insurance?
Cost of Physical Exam Without Insurance
The typical cost of physical exams not backed up by insurance averages about $50 to $200 or more. If you’re getting an annual exam that costs that much, you should at least know what the total price covers.
Typically, a physical exam would start with your physician looking at your medical history. In this stage, your doctor would gather information related to your health such as your lifestyle, diet, and exercise. Next, your physician would check your vital signs including your blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, and temperature.
Your doctor would also check your general appearance and facilitate heart, lung, head, and neck exams. You would also undergo abdominal, neurological, dermatological, and extremities exam. A physical exam for men may also include testicular, hernia, penis, and prostate exams, while women may undergo breast and pelvic exams.
Lastly, depending on your physician’s recommendations, you would also have to undergo laboratory tests such as complete blood count (CBC), chemistry panel, and urinalysis. Laboratory fees are usually separate from the physical exam fees, and the more lab tests you undergo, the higher the cost.
Thus, the cost of a physical exam without insurance would be a great deal more expensive than exams backed up by insurance, not only because you’ll have to pay for the entire cost, but also because of separate expenses such as laboratory fees.
Where to Get Physical Without Insurance
Most clinics and hospitals had fixed rates for physical exams. Naturally, the set prices are not yet influenced by any kind of insurance. Only when you opt to pay through insurance would the price change. With that said, the cost of a physical exam would vary from person to person as each one has a potentially different kind of payment plan backed up by his/her insurance company.
If you have no insurance, you would have to opt for a cash payment. So if you’re asking where to get physical without insurance, then any of those who receive such payments is a prospect.
Of course, if you’re saving costs, you would opt for less expensive physical exams. To determine where to get an examination at a low price, you should compare the charge rates of different clinics and hospitals.
To give you an idea, let’s take a look at the rates of Minute Clinic. They offer four physical exams namely:
- Camp Physicals $69
- DOT Physical $109
- DOT Physical Follow-up $35
- Sports Physicals $69
The clinic does not accept insurance for the physical exams so you would have no choice but to opt for cash payment. Also, no credit is allowed as the payment is due at the time of your visit.
For another price sample, the Avance Care, a clinic based in North Carolina, offers an adult wellness screening package that runs from $130 to $175. The clinic offers the package to patients 18 years and above. The price covers the annual physical and three lab test panels.
Other physical evaluations from Avance Care include:
- School/Sports/Camp Physical $34 to $45
- College Physical $41 to $55
- Work Physical $45 to $60
- Extensive Work Physical $68 to $90
- Teacher Physical $41 to $55
- Kindergarten Physical $82 to $110
The price does not yet include laboratory fees and vaccination charges as the cost for such would depend on what your physician recommends. For instance, if your doctor tells you to undergo urinalysis, you would have to pay another $8 to $10 for the test. On the other hand, vaccines would cost you as low as $29 to as high as $150.
Another clinic that is based in New York, Physical Exam Center, charges uninsured patients an upfront price of $130 for a comprehensive annual physical examination. If you opt for credit payment, the clinic would charge you $150. The center also accepts insurance including Blue Cross, Oxford, AETNA, United Healthcare, Guardian, GHI, and First Health, to name a few.
Importance of Annual Physical
The above prices might answer your question on how much is a physical without insurance. But you might also ask, after knowing the costs, if it’s worth shouldering an annual expense for such examination.
If you have health issues, it would help you a lot to pay your physician an annual visit. That way, you could monitor if your health is improving or deteriorating. Consulting your doctor could also serve as your comfort if you’re suffering from a kind of sickness.
The question of whether healthy people should also opt for the annual physical or not, though, is an ongoing debate. Some experts may insist that an annual physical makes no sense as it does not detect the patient’s real health problems (if there is any). However, some argue that visiting your doctor regularly would help you maintain your health.
If you don’t want to spend so much for a physical exam, you could always apply for an insurance. Having someone to back up your medical fees would, after all, save you lots of money without having to sacrifice the health examination.
Most importantly, to avoid additional costs, live a healthy life. That way, you would only have to spend for annual physical exams and nothing more.