When you need an MRI... or 2....go to CDI!!

Not our images, but similar.

Submitted by Patty Swedberg

​If you're on Raise the Bar's Triathlon team or have raced at one of our events the last few years, you recognize the Center for Diagnostic Imaging as one of our sponsors. CDI's reputation as an outpatient provider (outside the hospital system) is that they can serve their clients faster and more conveniently with the highest quality providers, and at a lower cost. YAY!  Many of our team members have used them for CT scans, MRI's, pain injections, breast exams, etc.  This month, so have my husband and I.

2 years of Bill's persistent sciatic pain, and a year of shoulder pain for me is what ended us up at CDI last month. Our doctors through the Valley Medical system prescribed MRI's  $$GULP  and were a little surprised but not at all put off by the fact we wanted our images done at CDI.  Their typical referral is to their own Valley Diagnostic Imaging, but as consumers we can go anywhere and insurance will cover it as long as the provider is in our network or course (We have Blue Cross Blue Shield). 

Everything went smoothly - the referral, prior authorization with the insurance company, and scheduling of the appointment was smooth and quick and nobody snarled at us for wanting to somewhere besides Valley.  We did need to follow up with the Dr. when we'd had the images done for the next step.

Out of curiosity, we did some cost comparisons to see what the extent of our out-of-pocket savings would be. We understood CDI would be cheaper - but how much cheaper??? We contacted both Valley and Multicare Diagnostic and learned our out-of-pocket for each MRI would be about $875 after insurance for the images and the radiologist report.  We just got our insurance statements for the MRI's at CDI and our out-of-pocket will be $480 for the same.  It does cost less at CDI - and not just a little!

From signing in at the front desk and the procedure - definitely convenient and efficient. The staff made sure we were comfortable and informed.  We could have accessed their Open MRI machine if we were claustrophobic but didn't need to. We left with CD's of our images and  by the next day, we were both able to access the radiologist's summaries of the MRI's online and made appointments with the doctors who would be dealing with the next part of the journey, treatment.  Bill is headed for back surgery in the next month or so.  After reading my image, Dr. Schumacher from CDI recommended a great surgeon- Christopher Wahl - and I'll be headed to surgery eventually myself.  Aargh we are getting old....

If you find yourself needing a service that CDI provides, it makes sense of many levels to investigate what CDI has to offer, not the least of which is a big savings.

You can read more about how CDI stands out as a great option HERE.  We continue to be grateful to them as a great provider and a sponsor!  You can meet CDI's Dr. Schumacher and Aimee Geertgens at RTB's Season Kickoff Friday night!

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Dr. James Schumacher

Aimee Geertgens