Would Kaiser refer to Dr Natalel?

Anyone using Kaiser and can get them refer to Dr Natale? How can you do it?

Not much luck getting Kaiser referrals to Dr Natale over the years from our group Kong!

Alas, in our long experience on this forum few, if any, Kaiser insurance holders have been directly referred from Kaiser physicians to Dr Natale, and to my knowledge, few if any other non-Kaiser physicians in other specialties have been referred too when Kaiser deems they have 'adequate' physicians capable of performing the same or similar procedure the Kaiser patient is seeking out side referral for.

Kaiser has some good qualities too and is renowned for their focus on preventive medicine ... at least 'preventative' from the strictly allopathic perspective. But being liberal on accommodating their patient's demand for referral to outside world-renowned specialists has not been a strong suit there in our experience.

What many Kaiser plan holders on this site have done who are determined to see Dr Natale for their EP/cardiac ablation care, is that they sign up for another more flexible insurance plan for a year or two that accepts Dr Natale in their network already. And stay with the new plan at least long enough to complete a potential two-part expert ablation process with Dr Natale and then drop Kaiser during this period.

Not infrequently, some Kaiser patients who have accessed Dr Natale's unparalleled skill with an ablation catheter in this way, originally assumed they would return to Kaiser after their arrhythmia issues had been put to bed long term by Dr Natale.

What more often happens, is that such patients discover while using the more accommodating insurance plan, that their medical/health insurance needs are met very well on the new plan and thus have found little incentive for switching back to their original more restrictive plan.

There are some who have switched back to Kaiser well after their AFIB is in the rear view mirror, due to preferring some aspects of Kaiser's over-all program, but these seem to be the exception in our modest experience with folks who felt compelled to drop their original plan, just to be able to access Dr Natale's skill after being rejected often multiple times in their request to Kaiser, or a Kaiser cardiologist, to allow then to go to Dr Natale to guide their ablation process and have Kaiser pay for it.

You can certainly try to get outside referral Kong, and perhaps things have changed over time? But you first have to get your local Kaiser cardiologist or EP to sign off on such a recommendation, and so far, that has been a tough sell for the folks from our forum who have shared with me and others here their saga required to wind up in Dr Natale's highly capable hands.

Shannon

Thank you Shannon for the detail explanation. Looks like the better option is to switch plan.

I, too, am extremely disappointed that it would be an uphill fight, and without success, for my getting Kaiser to refer me to Dr. Natale.

I've researched their EPs in my area (San Diego, quite near Scripps La Jolla, where Dr. Natale does procedures!) and they are very much lacking the expertise of Dr. Natale. My best guess is that it's most likely the EPs are doing different procedures and haven't had the chance to hone their skills at one specific procedure, to the exquisite level that Dr. Natale has.

I also looked into changing insurance at the end of this year, but the only other non-Kaiser option my district offers is apparently NOT one that Dr. Natale's office accepts.

I'm feeling my hands are tied a bit here. Also, I have what's considered *top* Kaiser coverage for retirees, and I pay a little extra for it, but it was a one-time only offer and if I ever switch to a different insurance option (either the other Kaiser option, or the second insurance option that's offered), I lose *top* kind of coverage and can never get it back. I double checked with the benefits office about this.

Sue