Civil Surgeons...

[lechatnoir 0]

Ok, so I called a bunch of civil surgeons in our area today... all of them said different things to me. I knew in advance that prices would vary... but they all varied on which vaccines/blood work would be needed and the procedure...

One place I called said in lieu of doing all the vaccines they can test his blood to see if he's already been tested??? Then others varied quite a bit on timing... one place said the whole thing would take 2-3 days and another place said several weeks...

I feel like picking a civil surgeon is like picking a lawyer...some are idiots and some are the real deal? If they are licensed civil surgeons and listed on the USCIS website...they should be reputible right? And if so... how do I know which one to go with? They all gave me such ranging answers about what tests were needed, the procedure and how long it would take.

We pretty much need to do everything that is required... my husband says he hasn't really had any vaccines in a while and all the medical records would be in Danish if we ordered them from his country.

We have till around the 28th/29th to submit our forms but I just want to get all the ducks in a row. I'm just scared if we pick some shady civil surgeon that they won't do their job correctly and then we'll get denied later or something because they didn't give him the right tests/results.

[rubyred 0]

we found this part really stressful, too. the list of civil surgeons on the USCIS website is really inaccurate and out of date. my advice: try to find a civil surgeon located in a middle-class suburb - it'll be medium-priced, you won't have to wait long to get an appointment, it'll be clean and well-organised. also important: when you ring, make sure to ask them if they have experience dealing with immigration exams, because you don't want to have to stress that they're not doing things the right way.

get your husband to get his medical records, don't worry that they're in danish - as long as he can translate them, it'll probably be fine. all i had was a faxed transcript from my doc's office, nothing particularly official or special about it. depending on your husband's age, he's probably had all the necessary vaccines and will maybe only need a tetanus shot. most of the vaccines listed on the I-693 are age-specific (i.e. for little babies/kids or the elderly).

also: you do need to send the medical exam in with your other forms.

[ikarus 1]

I don't get it. Wasn't there a medical form you took to the embassy when you first got the k1 visa? I think is the 3025; do you have a copy of that? That should have had the vaccines your spouse had....anyway, we took the 3025 form to dr. arnold, and for 30 dollars, we solved our problem. You should do a search for him on this forum; there are tons of posts around the high prices civil surgeons are charging. We were in houston and we got quoted prices from 300 to 1100 dollars. This is the info I have from him, but it might have changed; we got our stuff done in february of this year.

Dr. L. E. Arnold

4534 Westgate Boulevard

Austin, TX 78745

Tel: (512) 444-3131

Fax: (512) 447-4699

[rubyred 0]

it doesn't sound like this person is on a K-1 so they'll need to go through the whole medical exam process here.

[lechatnoir 0]

Hi Ruby, thanks for the reply!

What kind of vaccines are they talking about? I asked my husband and he doesn't recall ever getting any vaccines other than maybe a flu shot. So, I'm guessing we should just go ahead ahd have everything done.

Do the online guides specifically list what blood work/etc that he needs?

One office we called (we do already live in middle class suburbia) said they take walk in appointments and seemed to be reasonable. They said 100 for the office visit, 80 for the HIV test and then additional charges for the rest of the stuff depending on what he needs... assuming he needs "everything"... what would "everything" be?

[rubyred 0]

your hubby probably had most of the necessary vaccines as a baby/child: TB, polio, rubella/mumps/measles, diptheria, a whole bunch of others. his family doctor from his childhood should have records.

for a doctor visit, all the tests (HIV, syphillis, TB) plus a rubella shot and tetanus shot (and a pregnancy test before getting the rubella) it was about $300.

we went in on a friday for the basic exam and blood tests, as well as the TB skin test, came back on the monday and they gave me the shots and all my completed forms and test results.

definitely shop around: we found HUGE differences from place to place.

(also: if he can't get the vaccine records, your husband will have to get the tests for the vaccines - not sure how much these cost)

[CitizenUS 0]

your hubby probably had most of the necessary vaccines as a baby/child: TB, polio, rubella/mumps/measles, diptheria, a whole bunch of others. his family doctor from his childhood should have records.

for a doctor visit, all the tests (HIV, syphillis, TB) plus a rubella shot and tetanus shot (and a pregnancy test before getting the rubella) it was about $300.

we went in on a friday for the basic exam and blood tests, as well as the TB skin test, came back on the monday and they gave me the shots and all my completed forms and test results.

definitely shop around: we found HUGE differences from place to place.

(also: if he can't get the vaccine records, your husband will have to get the tests for the vaccines - not sure how much these cost)

This just shows the differences between the examinations in different parts of the country and with different doctors.

I was ranting here the other day that our exam cost $260 and the tests cost another $750 for a total of about $1000 complete. My husband brought his entire original vaccination record to the exam.

They tested for HIV Mumps STD's Zoster and TB. No vaccinations were given.

"Civil surgeons" use the experience to pad their salaries without paying taxes.

It's a complete and total racket.

Edited June 10, 2009 by CitizenUS

[rubyred 0]

wow, that's terrible! were there no other options for you? that may be why your doc charged so much - knew he could get away with it, if there were no other CSs for you to choose instead.

i was really stressed out about the exam beforehand - my lovely husband did all the organising, phoning round to find the best deal and also a female doctor. we ended up having to drive an hour to the clinic, but the doctor and her staff were really experienced in immigration exams and very friendly.

[lechatnoir 0]

Oh my gosh! That is a huge difference...where do you live? I thought ours would be bad as I live near Washington, DC ... I think the most expensive price I got was about 350. I dunno what I would do if they come back saying the bill is 1000.

Do all the civil surgeons perform the same battery of tests? It seems to me that some require only a small amount and then others do more. Does USCIS accept whatever comes back from the civil surgeon as ok or might they look at it and be like hmmmm... you didn't have X test so we're denying you?

[CitizenUS 0]

Oh my gosh! That is a huge difference...where do you live? I thought ours would be bad as I live near Washington, DC ... I think the most expensive price I got was about 350. I dunno what I would do if they come back saying the bill is 1000.

Do all the civil surgeons perform the same battery of tests? It seems to me that some require only a small amount and then others do more. Does USCIS accept whatever comes back from the civil surgeon as ok or might they look at it and be like hmmmm... you didn't have X test so we're denying you?

We had our exam done about an hour north of Green Bay, WI in a little tiny town. It isn't like there's no other "civil" doctors around....the one in GB wanted $310 but couldn't accommodate us on the appointment.

They are supposed to test you for mumps, std's hiv, TB Zoster, etc, etc....it's all on the form.

The medical exam cost (doctor) doesn't cover the testing. Only if they do their own testing at the lab. Some doctors may give you an all inclusive price. But most doctors send the blood out to a lab for testing. And of course the doctor gives the lab your name and address for billing.

Incidentally, the lab will get paid $25-$50 a month. I don't care if it takes 3 years.....

[lechatnoir 0]

do you need to take the form in with you when you go or will the dr's office know what to do?

[rubyred 0]

it's a good idea to take a copy of the I-693 with you - the doctor i went to had the forms there, they were obviously really experienced with immigration exams. but best to take a copy just in case.

[motu 6]

Most doctors sign up for being civil surgeons to make additional money. Some will be professional - following a set of tests and vaccinations others will probably wing it on the spur of the moment. Ask around, get a fell for what they will do and the prices (ask about the lab test prices too). It seems you do not have any insurance - it would cover some of the costs especially the lab tests are only $10 or 15 when covered by insurance - otherwise they run into hundreds of dollars (we get physicals every year and can see what they billed the insurance for and what we have to pay). Good Luck

[motu 6]

oops duplicate post

Edited June 11, 2009 by motu

[lechatnoir 0]

Hi, thanks... we do actually have insurance as my company let me add him without a social security number. However the plan I have requires a 1500 dollar deductible per year ... so we'd have to pay the lab fees out of pocket anyways.

I think I would just prefer to go to one place and get one price than having to go to multiple.