Difficulty finding a place to get DEXA scan (U.S. only)

[dw98611]

Has anyone experienced this?

I'm in the Portland, OR area, and around here, it's hard to get an appointment for a DEXA scan. This is a relatively recent change. 2.5 years ago I was able to schedule one no problem. The place I went to get it closed since then, and I tried calling four different places yesterday, and couldn't even get through to two of them (the other two needed a referral from my doctor, and one of them had "lost" a referral my doctor had already sent). My doctor's assistant called around and most of them are booked for months (one until next year). Fortunately they found a place I can go where I can get one next week (I want to get it soon so I can discuss the results with my doctor if they're not positive; she's moving to a new practice next month).

Are DEXA scans easy to schedule in your areas?

And I'm wondering why they don't give you the body fat percentage information that DEXA also determines. It would be good to get that result as well if you're going in for a bone scan.

[ORdogmom]

so, I am in Eugene, and I just found out that there is an Osteostrong location in Bend, who offers the Echolight REMS scan. Everyone says they are more informative than just a Dexa, they are not paid for by insurance, but reports here on this site say they usually cost about $150. If you can’t find a nearby Dexa location, and you are up for a day trip, it might be worth looking into. I know that a year ago, here in Eugene, I was able to get in for my Dexa in a matter of weeks. That said, I am finding out just how bad the medical field is here in Oregon. Not enough staffing, places closing down, and this stupid non-compete thing that is keeping medical staff from being able to move from one practice or medical group to another. When I was looking for a place to move to to retire, I never even thought that I needed to consider availability of medical treatment as a deciding factor of where I was willing to move. I am disappointed that it is even that bad in the big city.

[dw98611 in reply to ORdogmom]

My primary care physician told me that, for some reasons, doctors don't want to come to the Portland, OR area (she had recently moved here, and she's also decided to leave). They have a severe anathesiologist shortage in the area (for several months Providence, a major health-care system here, had to cancel all non-essential surgeries because of it). I've lived here since 1996 and for years I thought the health care in the area was great, but since COVID, it's gone downhill fast. Other areas of the country have recovered as far as I can tell. I would be willing to go to Bend for a REMs scan but I don't think my doctor would accept it (they probably need good double-blind trials on the REMS scan before the results become accepted).

Yes, retirees have told me they do consider availability of medical treatment when choosing a place to retire. Apparently, this is making this area not good for retirement. My husband and I might need to rethink our plans to retire here.

Does anyone on this list know if the situation is better in the Seattle area? There are areas there that we think we'd like that we can still afford, but I'd hate to just up and move only to find out that the situation there is just as bad.

[Biru49]

I live in St. George, UT, a two hour road trip from Vegas. I had a DEXA scan a month ago at our local Intermountain Hospital location. I called to schedule an appointment and had the scan a week later. Insurance covered it. Pretty sure Utah won't work for you but you asked about situations in other areas. Good luck with your scan.