Are We a Good Fit?

Larchmont Pediatrics  believes that all children should receive the recommended vaccines according to the schedule outlined by the American Academy of Pediatrics.  Vaccines are safe and effective in preventing diseases and health complications in children and young adults. Regular vaccinations help prevent infections in children, and are administered as one of the safest and best methods of disease prevention.  Vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health-promoting intervention we perform as health care providers, and that you can do as parents/caregivers.   The recommended vaccines and their schedule are the results of years of scientific study, rigourous safety standards and data gathering on millions of children by thousands of our brightest scientists and physicians to ensure that vaccines are both effective and safe for children and young adults.

We require all of our patients to get vaccinated unless medically contraindicated.  The first vaccine need to be given no later than 3 months and all of the vaccines that are recommended before 2 years must be completed by your child's 2nd  birthday.  

If you decide not to vaccinate your child, we will respect your decision but we will ask you to find another health care provider who shares your views.  

We recommend you review our Vaccine Policy for more detials. Please feel free to discuss any concerns you may have about vaccines with us.  We welcome having the conversation with you.  

We strive to avoid overusing antibiotics by educating families on their proper use and following evidence-based guidelines to ensure responsible prescribing. Many cases are viral and do not require antibiotic treatment. Instead, our pediatricians take the time to explain alternative approaches and the importance of allowing the body to heal naturally when appropriate. 

Additionally, we do not routinely prescribe antibiotics over the phone and rarely via telemedicine, as we strongly believe it is not sound medical practice to do so without a proper assessment including a physical exam. Antibiotics are only prescribed when deemed necessary and appropriate after a thorough evaluation, prioritizing the well-being of our patients while avoiding the risks of antibiotic resistance and unnecessary side effects.

We work hard to provide comprehensive medical care and serve as your medical home. To that end, we urge you to contact our office FIRST before seeking specialty care or heading to another provider for urgent care. We want to be involved in either providing care in our office where appropriate or referring you to the most appropriate specialist and helping coordinate your care.

Whenever you do see a specialist, we ask that you request a report be sent directly to our office so we may stay informed and have the most up-to-date information in your child’s medical record.

Our practice prides itself on efficiency through the use of technology. Where applicable, you will be encouraged to consult our website, register for and use our patient portal, and effectively use automated reminders for appointments and routine care/immunizations that are due.

We make every effort to meet the needs of our patients, offering both routine well child visits and sick child visits. To ensure we provide you with the most efficient care we ask that you call to schedule an appointment when your child needs to be seen in our office.

Our office hours are:

Monday:        08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

Tuesday:        08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

Wednesday: 08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

Thursday:        08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

Friday:        08:00 AM - 05:00 PM

We have a nurse for urgent after hours issues. This allows our doctors to be rested and ready to see patients during office hours.   If you have an urgent matter that cannot wait until our regular business hours, you can call the office and press "0" once the voicemail answers.  This will transfer your call to the nurse who is on call. You will speak to a registered nurse who can help you and is able to reach one of our physicians if needed.

We encourage you to visit our child health resources for helpful information before calling our after-hours clinician.

For non-urgent matters mild illness, scheduling appointments, or refilling medications, please call during regular office hours. 

Please ensure we participate with your insurance plan.  We are currently contracted with Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Cigna, Aetna, United Healthcare and Healthnet PPO insurance plans. This includes Blue Shield and Healthnet PPO Covered California Plans. We also accept Blue Shield EPO and United Healthcare EPO and POS. With Blue Shield, we accept the Calpers Platinum plan but not the Calpers Gold plan nor the Tandem PPO plan.   We are not contracted with any HMO plans nor any Medi-Cal plans. 

Though we are contracted with these companies, we may not be an in-network provider with all of the "sub-plans" within each company. If uncertain, it is important that you verify our office's participation in your network with your insurance carrier. We are not able to confirm this for you. Please present your insurance cards at each visit and be prepared to pay any copays at the time of service.

When insurance cannot be verified as active, a visit will be considered "self-pay" and at the conclusion of the visit charged at a discounted same-day rate for all services provided. If coverage is later verified and the visit paid, a refund will be given for any overpayment.

Your insurance policy is a contract between you and your insurance company, whether an individual or a group plan through your employer.  It is your responsibility to understand the limits and coverage of your health insurance policy. Because of the multitude of different plans within each company and variations of benefits that employers offer and individuals can choose from, our office cannot know the details and which services are covered by your specific plan.  If you have questions regarding which services are covered, how many of certain types of visits (such as well care) are covered in a calendar year, or how much your responsibility will be for a certain service, please check with your insurer.  It is also important to be aware of which other contracted facilities your insurance participates with for lab, radiology, urgent care, emergency room visits, or hospitalization, so that in an urgent situation you are seen at the appropriate location.  We strive to avoid any billing surprises, but we must bill your health plan according to federal guidelines and the actual services rendered.

For more details, please review our Financial Policy.

For sick visits, please contact our office to schedule an appointment.  We do not have walk-in appointments.  We make every effort to see ill children the same day that you call us. Appointment slots for sick patients often fill quickly (especially in the winter months), so please call our office as early in the day as possible. If your child has a medical emergency during office hours we will do our best to see your child as soon as possible or refer you to the appropriate facility.  

At each well-child visit, we will schedule your child's next well-child visit even if it is a year from now!  This way we ensure that your child doesn't get too far off schedule for the recommended well visits.    If at some point your schedule changes and that appointment time doesn't work please call our office to reschedule and we will find a better time for you and your child.

Our practice makes every effort to run on time with appointments, as we believe everyone’s time is equally valuable.

As a courtesy, we will remind you of your upcoming appointments via your chosen method of phone, text message, or email.

We ask that you arrive 5 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. We understand sometimes things happen beyond your control that may cause you to be late.   If you are running late or need to reschedule, please contact our office as soon as possible and we will do our best to accommodate you. If you are later than 15 minutes for your appointment, we will try to work you back into the schedule, or perhaps offer an appointment to you with another provider.  Out of courtesy to our other patients, we may need to ask you to reschedule your appointment.

Broken appointments represent a cost to us, to you, and to other patients who could have been seen in the time set aside for you. We reserve the right to charge a fee for canceled or missed appointments. We request 24 hours notice for cancellation of appointments to avoid this fee.

Vitamin K is a nutrient used by our bodies to make factors that help our blood clot.  We get Vitamin K in our diet and from the good bacteria in our intestines.  Newborns have low Vitamin K stores and therefore are at risk for serious bleeding from their umbilical stump, in their intestines and in their brains in the first few months.  There is no oral liquid formulation of Vitamin K available in the United States and the oral formulation isn't as effective as the injection formulation. Therefore the only option for Vitamin K for newborns is the shot.  It is very important that the Vitamin K shot be given within the first few hours after birth.  We feel very strongly that Vitamin K is essential for your newborn's health.  If you decide you don't want to give Vitamin K to your newborn, we respect that this is your decision but we do not agree with it.   You will need to choose a different practice.  We are always happy to discuss your concerns with you.