Ha, that's bold of you to assume I have a doctor at all.
this post was submitted on 22 Nov 2025
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Most people are limited to the doctors in their area that take the insurance provided by their job, which often narrows down your choices a LOT.
In the USA, (maddeningly) insurance companies are the gatekeepers of healthcare, so work through them. Your health insurance might have a tool on their website to search for doctors that take your insurance, which will save you a lot of time making sure you stay in network.
Otherwise, you should be able to call your health insurance provider and ask them.
Say you've done that. How do you choose one? What criteria should I look for? Where they went to school? Are health grades any good?
!askusa@discuss.online
Thanks! I'll post there as well.
I hardly have a doctor (Who can afford that?) but I use the insurance website to search for nearby providers because coverage is most important to me. Then, I look at reviews of their offices on Google Maps before calling to see if they're taking new patience for final selection.
I knew I wanted my primary care provider to be an internal medicine specialist at a clinic which does not do pediatrics, so that narrowed it down a good bit. From there, I started reading patient reviews. Then I checked that they accepted my insurance.
I try to take care of my health as much as possible because I cannot afford to have a medical emergency.
I checked who my insurance provided
My wife is resourceful in such matters.
Can you put your wife on the phone for me?
She said your insurance provider should have a list of in network doctors.
Maybe I should have rephrased this. I can find a doctor. How do I choose one?
Oh, you just have to try them out. Pick one that you feel listens to you and takes what you say seriously. We live out of town so she started with who had the closest office.
She doesn't have a secret method. I was just bragging on my wife that does what I'm too lazy to do, she makes the phone calls. If I like the doc she sent me to she calls the same one next time.
My large corporate employer spawned many support businesses, including the local medical clinic chain. Unfortunately, the clinic chain was bought by Optum, so they've been doing their utmost to make it worse. On the whole, they have a robust set of providers from many specialties.
One specialist i see is one of many I've had over time. The trick is to fire anyone who isn't doing their job and move on to the next one. Eventually you'll find one to stick with. I'd say I've had two good ones over 30 years for this specialty.
I got my primary care doctor from a family member recommendation. Most specialists I see are based on her recommendation (even if there’s not a formal referral). My wife has a less-common medical condition and found her primary care doctor from a local Facebook group for people with the condition where people were sharing doctors they’d had good experiences with.
I think that insurance I had in the past or currently has some sort of lookup for doctors in-network and people were able to leave reviews. I’ve actually had some success with that, trying to see from the reviews who I might jive with. I feel like I’ve had more success from talking with people and seeing if they like their doctor, though.
I got a list of providers that I could use with my insurance, and there was only 1 viable choice within distance. I ain't driving all the way to San Francisco for the other choice.
It was the closest one to my house on my then-current insurance. I got lucky, and love them so much that I now make sure any insurance plan I consider includes that location.
Pretty good.
- PCP - Good
- Dentist - Awesome, been a patient of his for 8 years.
- Eye Doctor - Awesome, only have to see her once a year.
Overall, very pleased. I'm one of the lucky ones.