2) Physical Health (Your Body Is Infrastructure)
Establish baseline health setup (your medical home base)
Your first job is to find an in-network Primary Care Physician (PCP). Look for Internal Medicine or Family Practice doctors—they handle adult general health. Use your insurance website to search for in-network providers and check reviews on Zocdoc or Healthgrades. Schedule your free annual physical (it's covered as preventive care with no deductible). Create a 'Personal Health Vault'—a Google Drive folder with your test results, medication list, vaccination records, and health summary. You'll need this for visa medicals, new doctors, and emergencies. Learn to read your own results: 'normal' ranges are population averages, but 'optimal' is where you want to be. A fasting glucose of 99 is 'normal' but actually pre-diabetic territory.
Knowing the difference can make your visit 100% free or very expensive.
- Preventive Care is under the Affordable Care Act, most insurance plans must cover things like your Annual Wellness Visit, certain screenings, and vaccines at zero cost to you.
- Diagnostic Care is when you go to the doctor because you already have a symptom (e.g., My stomach hurts). This is not free. You will have to pay your co-pay or meet your deductible.
- If you go in for a free preventive checkup but start complaining about a specific new pain, the doctor may change the code to diagnostic, and you will get a bill. If you want to keep the visit free, stick to the routine checkup list.
Free Resource: Preventive vs. Diagnostic Care Examples
Resources
Record your progress
Mark this subsection complete to track your progress.