Dr.'s in Anchorage... (Seward: insurance, place to live, prices)

[undercovermom]

Could someone please let me know what the Dr. situation is like in Anchorage? I am moving from Canada and we have a major Dr. shortage. My husband will have health coverage through work, so will that dictate what Dr. I can use? I'm not familiar with the HMO system in the States, so any comments are appreciated. Also, are there many female Dr.'s in Anchorage - that would be a real bonus for me!

Thanks again.

[BudinAk]

Originally Posted by undercovermom

Could someone please let me know what the Dr. situation is like in Anchorage? I am moving from Canada and we have a major Dr. shortage. My husband will have health coverage through work, so will that dictate what Dr. I can use? I'm not familiar with the HMO system in the States, so any comments are appreciated. Also, are there many female Dr.'s in Anchorage - that would be a real bonus for me!

Thanks again.

There are plenty of doctors, both male and female, in Anchorage. Also, it seems most of the specialists are in Anchorage. We live in Seward, a small town about 100m south of Anchorage, and all we have here are a few general practitioners. Whenever we need to see a specialist, we find one in Anchorage. I think you'll be fine there.

Bud

[insearchof]

Originally Posted by undercovermom

Could someone please let me know what the Dr. situation is like in Anchorage? I am moving from Canada and we have a major Dr. shortage. My husband will have health coverage through work, so will that dictate what Dr. I can use? I'm not familiar with the HMO system in the States, so any comments are appreciated. Also, are there many female Dr.'s in Anchorage - that would be a real bonus for me!

Thanks again.

Luckily, AK does not have an HMO system.
feel free to PM me and I'd be happy to make some suggestions also I realize that this being a public forum you may prefer to ask some one privately

[rotorhead]

Truth be told, you reach the end of the road on medical care pretty quickly even in Anchorage. Anything major or out of the ordinary pretty much guarantees a trip to Seattle or points south.

That said, Alaska market is really too small for the HMOs, so you usually get some variation on a PPO where there aren't many choices. Other than for GPs and primary care docs, pretty much all the specialists are on all the PPO lists and the determining factor is often who can fit you into the schedule first. There are exceptions of course. The PPO lists in most places change so fast they never actually print them, they're all online.

[TC Skier]

I guess I disagree about the kind of care you can get in ANC. Out of the ordinary, perhaps you may need to go out of state. But major, I think you can do that here. Cardiac bypass surgery, taking out a tumor or putting in intravascular brain coils, all pretty major. And all available from excellent docs locally.

I actually think the quality of care in this town is excellent. Freedom from HMO's means that you and your doctor, not someone from your HMO, make decisions about your healthcare. Healthcare is pretty expensive here, but all the docs have to be shipped up by UPS 2nd day air, so with gas prices and all you can see where that might be the case.

For what it is worth, most of the canucks I have met seem to prefer the US system.

Different from an HMO system, there are preferred providers here for Blue Cross and Aetna (maybe some others too) and I think most docs in Anchorage are preferred providers for Blue Cross, but you can still usually see "out of network" providers, you just have to pay a higher percentage of the bill. Likewise for services of differing sorts. They may pay more or less for certain preventive health care or other types of procedures or medications.

[Naturo Doc in Alaska]

Originally Posted by undercovermom

Could someone please let me know what the Dr. situation is like in Anchorage? I am moving from Canada and we have a major Dr. shortage. My husband will have health coverage through work, so will that dictate what Dr. I can use? I'm not familiar with the HMO system in the States, so any comments are appreciated. Also, are there many female Dr.'s in Anchorage - that would be a real bonus for me!

Thanks again.

Hi
I'm a naturopathic doc in Anchorage and there are plaenty of docs here. We have some shortage for specialty's as well as medicare docs, but insurance will get you in the door. My web is drmaddynd.com. The Natural Health Center where I work has a 4 N.D's and a chiro 2 acupuncturists and a bunch of body workers. We work well with mainstream, but I do all the annuals for women and well baby exams as well as treat the sick. You'll find it a nice place to live I hope.
Madeleine

[Southwb]

i WENT TO ONE AND i THINK THATS WHAT ALMOST KILLED ME