You will not be assigned to a local doctor automatically. You can search for one in your phone book or even by driving around the nearest town or village centre (practices are often well-marked). You will need to find a practice that is accepting new patients, you must be prepared to give them your medical history, and you will need to fill out a number of forms. An increasing number of doctors are choosing to only take patients who pay cash as the large insurance companies are taking longer to pay practitioner’s bills.

Paying for treatment

If you have proof of insurance available, show it at the hospital front desk or wherever this information is requested at the hospital you go to. In an emergency they will save your life first, then charge you the money second. You will be expected to pay before you leave. Even if you do have health insurance, you will need to pay part of the cost when you have finished being seen by your doctor. You will normally be billed for the rest of the fee through the mail.

A trip to the hospital by ambulance will be expensive. Costs vary by state, but $1500 is not unusual. Transportation by emergency helicopter will be much more. As a guideline, Medicare will currently reimburse $300 per mile, each way (February 2009).

Hospitals

In major cities, there are usually a number of hospitals. In small cities and in towns there may be only one. The more rural the area, the more likely that a hospital may be the only place with the equipment to treat serious injuries or ailments. To search for hospital information within the USA, try www.hospitalsworldwide.com/hospitals.php?country=USA to find the names of hospitals in the place you are relocating to.

For the latest information on the rankings of US hospitals see this link.

Emergencies

If you cannot get to a hospital yourself, you should call 911 and request an ambulance to take you to a hospital emergency room (however, if you can get the emergency treatment from your regular doctor and avoid going to a hospital then you should do so). If you need to go to hospital and are able to get there yourself you may wish to call ahead so that, if possible, you have an appointment scheduled for when you get there. This may save you from waiting for hours in the hospital emergency room.

Prescriptions

Prescription drugs are available at drugstores, as well as a number of other stores, including supermarkets. Although drugstores sell many items, there will be a pharmacy counter, normally at the back, where a pharmacist will be able to help you. Just give the pharmacist your slip of paper from the doctor (your prescription) and then wait for your medication to be prepared, after which you will need to pay. The instructions on how to use the medicine will be in English on the package.

Finding a dentist

Follow the same procedure as you would to find a doctor. If you have medical insurance, check if it places any limitations on which dentist you may choose. If it does, then choose from amongst those in your medical insurance options listing.

Childcare

There are many different kinds of childcare available in the USA. Options include private in-home child care, institutional child care (see note below), and corporate institutional child care. Nowadays, employers are fairly flexible so that a two-parent family can arrange child care in a wide variety of ways.

Note: “Institutional child care” simply means that the provider is a business, rather than a relative or an individual. Normally, professional day care companies tend to care for dozens or even hundreds of children every day. For an example, see www.lapetite.com, the home page of La Petite, a day care corporation with “Academies” throughout the United States.

Alternative medicine

There is growing interest in and acceptance of alternative health care in the USA. In addition, more of it can be covered by insurance, including chiropractic care. However, it is still true that “regular physicians” are more often covered more easily by health insurance.

Mental health and support services

There is good insurance coverage for some mental health conditions in the USA. There are both counseling services and psychiatric care. Psychiatrists are physicians and are legally allowed to dispense prescription drugs as part of their treatment plans. Therapists, however, often do all of their work without involving any drugs whatsoever. The field of mental health is considered by some to lack behind other areas of medical practice in the US, although there are signs this may be changing.

Mental health and disabilities both fall under the umbrella of the US Department of Health and Human Services. An access point to their website that covers mental health services is www.mentalhealth.org/cmhs.

Disability issues

You may need to contact the Health and Human Services Department for help with any problems relating to disabilities. These exist at both the federal and state levels. Contact the federal level of the department, whether in the country or outside of it. Then, when you know which state you will be living in, direct your enquiries through that level. See www.os.dhhs.gov for further details.