Pediatrician in Brooklyn preferably does NOT accept Medicaid

ringsher

Tue, Sep 04 2012, 10:23 pm

Hi all!

We are expecting our first child soon! We have started looking for a great pediatrician in Brooklyn (midwood, BP, kensington, etc). I know there are a ton of threads on this site related to my query, and they did help me narrow my search a bit. I'm looking for a pediatrician that you are happy with and who: 1) has flexible hours or Sunday hours (I work long hours in the city, so a 9-5 weekdays only doctor will not work out); 2) is open to suggesting other methods (I.e., would offer a natural solution to try first if they felt it was better than prescribing medication); 3) has a short wait time, and 4) preferably does not take medicaid or other insurances affiliated with medicaid. I had some really unpleasant experiences with doctors/offices that accepted medicaid/CHP, so even though there are great doctors that accept medicaid, I would like to avoid it if I can.

Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!

bnm

Tue, Sep 04 2012, 10:35 pm

Dr. Shulman doesn't take Medicaid but I don't know if she is taking new patients. I also don't know about all the other details. she is located on 9th avenue and 48 street in BP

Cookies n Cream

Tue, Sep 04 2012, 10:40 pm

Dr. Shulman is the only doctor that I know of that doesn't accept MCD .She only accepts Oxford, I believe.
Most of her patients pay out of pocket.
But she has a closed practice, and the wait is verrryyy looonngg.

Lady Bug

Tue, Sep 04 2012, 11:20 pm

Cookies n Cream wrote:

But she has a closed practice, and the wait is verrryyy looonngg.

Says who? I know a few people who had no problem getting in. her hours are not the greatest, though.

amother

Tue, Sep 04 2012, 11:52 pm

We love Dr. Schwimmer, Nostrand and Avenue M. Not sure about the medicaid question though, sorry. He has Sunday hours, late Tuesday night, will come in motzei Shabbos if your child is sick. Takes all your calls when you call. No problem getting appointment when needed. I find the wait time to be totally reasonable, never excessive. Great doctor, very dedicated.

turca

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 12:35 am

When I lost my job I wentt from a great private insurance to medicaid, yes I didn't like the packed medicaid patients office, yes I didn't like the overworked secretaries, but I found a great dr . And guess what: I'm back on private insurance and I still use this "medicaid" dr.

FranticFrummie

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 1:41 am

Wow. On the west coast, you have to basically go through the phone book to find a doctor who WILL take Medicaid! I have to take 3 buses and go all the way across town to get to a doctor. It's over a two and a half hour trip, each way. Confused

Count your blessings.

Cookies n Cream

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 8:05 am

Lady Bug wrote:

Cookies n Cream wrote:

But she has a closed practice, and the wait is verrryyy looonngg.

Says who? I know a few people who had no problem getting in. her hours are not the greatest, though.

Did they themselves use her a pediatrician when they were younger?
This is what I was told a year ago by her receptionist.
I was able to get in for a consult though, because she was my own pediatrician.
Could be things changed?

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 10:02 am

I'm not in NY so I can't advise you about specific doctors, but you might want to rethink the weekend hours requirement. My ped does not have Sunday hours, and only recently added evening hours. For the frequent well-baby checks in infancy, a nanny or grandparent can bring the baby in, if necessary (obviously this wouldn't work if you don't have anyone available). After infancy, it's only one check-up a year - that's not too much time off from work.

My feeling is, if a child is sick enough to go to a doctor, s/he is sick enough for a parent to stay home.

amother

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 3:59 pm

I am very happy with Dr. Ditchek in Flatbush. I do not know whether or not he takes Medicaid, but his office runs very smoothly. I also don't know about his hours, I never needed him yet on "off-hours" and I can't recall what the policy is.

As for philosophy, he wrote the book "Healthy Child, Whole Child"- http://www.amazon.com/Healthy-.....37465

Reality

Wed, Sep 05 2012, 8:08 pm

Dr. Norowitz. He's located in Kensington. I usually dont have to wait too long in the office. He has Sunday and evening hours. Also, he is very slow to prescribe medication and he's very pro nursing. Another plus is that he has a vary large family (bli ayin hara) so whatever has happened to one of my kids he has experienced personally with at least one of his!!

as far as Dr. Shulman, her practice was closed for a while but now I think it is open again because she took in another doctor.

Best of luck finding a ped. that is right for you!

Lati

Fri, Sep 14 2012, 8:26 pm

I'm horrified you won't even consider a doctor who takes medicaid or chp. that's a horrible attitude and you should be ashamed of yourself for your classist attitude.