Jersey Coast Vascular Institute, Meridian Health partner to accept a wide range of insurances

Feb 2 2015

Improving access to care is an important focus at Meridian Health, and a new partnership with Jersey Coast Vascular Institute is making high quality vascular services more readily available for local residents. In particular, the surgical practice is expanding the insurance coverage accepted by their physicians.

"We're excited about this new relationship," says vascular surgeon Frank Sharp, M.D. "Our group gets to maintain our autonomy as an independent practice, while partnering with Meridian to accept a broad range of insurance providers, which allows us to provide more care to our community members."

Vascular diseases are conditions that affect both arteries and veins. As the heart beats, it pumps blood through the body. Arteries carry blood away from the heart, and veins return blood to it. Most often, vascular disease affects blood flow, either by blocking or weakening blood vessels. Risk factors for vascular disease are the same as those for heart disease, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, family history, and tobacco use. Treatment options can range from lifestyle changes and medication, to minimally invasive endovascular procedures and surgical procedures.

Jersey Coast Vascular Institute is the largest vascular group in the region, comprised of five highly trained and experienced vascular surgeons: Rainier Aquino, M.D., Scott Cluley, M.D., Sung Kwon, M.D., Vincent Milazzo, M.D., and Frank Sharp, M.D. They are dedicated to treating a wide range of vascular diseases, including aortic aneurysms, peripheral artery disease (PAD), carotid artery disease, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and varicose veins. Additionally, they treat chronic wounds at Ocean Medical Center's Center for Wound Healing and provide comprehensive care for hemodialysis patients, including all forms of vascular access.

Jersey Coast Vascular Institute now accepts insurance payors that mirror those accepted by Meridian Health. Payors include Aetna, Cigna, Horizon NJ Health, Qualcare and many others. To learn more or make an appointment, call 732-202-1500.

"This will provide us the ability to better serve the public," says Ocean Medical Center president, Dean Lin. "We already have high quality, regionally renowned vascular specialists right here at Ocean. By accepting a range of insurances, we will be able to better serve local residents and take vascular services to the next level through Meridian Cardiovascular Network."