Naturopathic Medical Visits and Consultations
At Sage Garden Natural Medicine, we provide comprehensive naturopathic medical care. Below, you’ll find key information to help you prepare for your visit and navigate our healthcare services.
Our Patient Portal streamlines your care by allowing you to:
Schedule appointments
View lab results
Request prescription refills
Send messages to your care team
Your Initial Visit
New patient visits are 60 minutes in length and include:
A thorough investigation of your medical concerns
Comprehensive medical, family, and lifestyle history
Review of current medications and supplements
Guidance on high-quality supplement options and dosages
Analysis of previous lab work and recommendations for new tests
Establishing your health goals
Detailed treatment recommendations and action plan
Follow-Up Visits
Follow-up visits last 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the complexity of your case. Lab results and treatment progress will be reviewed during these visits.
Preparing for Your First Visit
To ensure a smooth first visit, follow these steps:
1. Complete Forms
Fill out the New Patient Intake and consent forms sent via the Charm portal. This secure, HIPAA-compliant platform stores your medical records, lab results, treatment plans, and communications.
2. Upload Medical Documents
If you have recent lab work, scans, or medical records from the past year, upload them to the Patient Portal under "Documents" before your appointment. Click Here for instructions.
3. Review Policies & Prepare for Visit
Check our Policies section for important information. Note our 24-hour cancellation policy. In addition, please prepare any questions you may have for Dr. Green prior to your appointment.
Preparing Documents
Label Your Documents Appropriately
Documents should be in PDF format ONLY and labeled by title and date.
Example: CBC.CMP.Lipids_9/01/23.pdf
Images should be in JPEG format and labeled by title and date.
Example: Rash_Left_Forearm_9/01/23.jpg
Upload Your Documents
Sign in to the Charm Portal
Click on Documents
Click Upload
Choose your file
Click Upload And Share
Please be sure to click in the “To” field and select Yvonne in the drop down menu.
***To allow ample time for review, documents need to be uploaded 3 business days prior to your appointment
Office Policies
Communication
We strive to return calls and messages within one to two business days. Due to the high volume of phone calls, emails, and portal messages, we respectfully ask the following.
Messages
Please message us through the portal, not our email.
Limit messages to 1-2 simple and clear questions related to your current treatment plan.
Repeated messages in a single business day are discouraged, as it can delay response time by increasing call/email volume.
Phone Calls
Our staff answers phones and responds to emails during our office hours; Tuesday-Thursday from 9:00am to 4:00pm .
Visits
Communications requiring a higher level of complexity, beyond simple questions, will be referred for a visit with the doctor, billed at their usual rate.
New symptoms require a visit so Dr. Green can best determine how to help you.
Emergencies
We do not offer a 24-hour emergency response. In the case of an emergency, please call 911 or seek medical attention at your local Urgent Care or Emergency Room.
Cancellations
We require 24 hours notice if you are unable to keep an appointment. If you cancel within 24 hours of your appointment time or do not arrive at your appointment, you will be charged 50% of the visit charge.
Prescriptions
We do our best to respond to refills promptly, but we have no control over shortages in medications or pharmacy timelines. Therefore, we require 10 days’ notice on any refill requests.
We utilize local pharmacies and Compounding Pharmacies for prescriptions. Prescriptions ordered through local pharmacies are generally covered by insurance. Compounded prescriptions are generally not covered by insurance.
Medicare Patients: Medicare does not cover prescriptions ordered by naturopathic physicians.
You can either coordinate with your primary care provider or use GoodRx.
Money Saving Tips
Use GoodRx or Mark Cuban Cost Plus Pharmacy to find the best prices.
If insurance doesn’t cover a medication, these resources can help save you up to $100 or more.
Refill requests should be sent through your pharmacy. While in most cases, your refill will be ready in 2 days, we ask that you allow 10 days for the request to be completed in the case that the pharmacy is out of stock.
Supplements/Herbal Tinctures
We use Fullscript and Doctors Supplement Store for most of the supplements we recommend. These companies sell a large variety of high-quality supplements that can be purchased and shipped directly to your home.
We also formulate individualized herbal tinctures in-house. These are shipped from our office on Wednesday afternoons.
Money Saving Tips & Cautions
We do not suggest purchasing supplements from big box stores.
These supplements may be outdated, relabeled, filled with a less therapeutic part of the herb, or even an entirely different product than what the label says.
Not only is this a waste of money, but in some cases, it can be downright dangerous.
Insurance & Payments
Due to the complexity of the conditions we treat, we do not accept insurance for visits. These cases require significant time and attention both during and outside of visits, including collaboration with other providers, research, and staying updated on new treatments—efforts that insurance does not cover. If we accepted insurance, we would be compromising the quality of care.
That said, most insurance plans cover prescriptions and commercial lab tests. HSA/FSA cards can be used for office visits, lab work, supplements, and other healthcare expenses. We also provide Superbills for you to submit to your insurance for potential reimbursement.
Labs
We utilize both Commercial and specialty labs
Specialty Labs
We also utilize specialty labs for things we cannot test for through commercial labs. These labs are generally not covered by insurance. You will be given a quote prior to the order being placed.
Lab samples like stool, urine, or dried blood spots can be done at home. For blood draws, you can obtain a blood draw at a facility like ArcPoint Labs or schedule a mobile phlebotomist to come to your home.
Medicare patients: Labs ordered by a naturopathic physician will not be covered. You can either coordinate with your primary care provider or use our cash pay services
Commercial Labs
Lab tests are processed through LabCorp or Quest Diagnostics. In most cases, these are covered by insurance. Be sure to confirm coverage with your insurance provider or lab draw facility BEFORE you have your blood drawn. We have no control over what your insurance will charge you. If you are quoted an amount that seems excessive, you may be able to get your labs run less expensively by using a cash pay lab service.
Money Saving Tips
Most commercial labs have a cash pay option.
Example of how cash pay labs can save you money when insurance fails:
A test for vitamin D could cost $200 if you try to run it through your insurance and your insurance doesn't cover it. The cash pay price through Professional Coop (LabCorp's Cash Pay Option) is only $45.