Referrals
Two things have to be in place before we can refer you.
- You are an established HAVEN patient. We cannot place a referral for someone we have not seen. Check your eligibility and call us to establish care first.
- You have a YNHH Free Care application on file. Specialty care is the expensive part of the system, and Free Care is what makes it affordable. Start it early: our MDIC team can file it with you at any Saturday clinic, and processing takes about 8 to 10 weeks, so an application begun today is what lets us book a specialist a couple of months from now.
Sometimes your health needs care beyond what we can provide at our Saturday clinic. When that happens, our team helps connect you with the right specialist and works to make that care affordable. Here is how referrals work at HAVEN.
Primary Care vs. Specialty Care
Primary care is the foundation of your health. It covers prevention, routine checkups, chronic disease management, and most everyday health concerns. This is what HAVEN provides directly through our Saturday clinic.
Specialty care refers to medical services that require advanced, focused expertise beyond the scope of primary care. Examples include:
Cardiology
heart health, blood pressure complications, and cardiac conditions
Gastroenterology
digestive conditions, endoscopy, and liver disease
Orthopedics
bone, joint, and musculoskeletal concerns
Radiology and imaging
X-rays, ultrasound, CT, and MRI ordered by your care team
When your care requires expertise or equipment beyond what HAVEN can provide, we will work with you to connect you with the right specialist.
Our Partnership with YNHH Free Care
HAVEN Free Clinic works closely with the Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) Free Care Office to help our patients access specialty care at little or no cost. Through this partnership, we are often able to secure free or significantly reduced-cost specialist appointments for patients who qualify, services that would otherwise be financially out of reach.
It means a referral from us is usually something you can actually afford to follow through on.
What Free Care is
- It is charity care, not insurance. There is no card. You apply, show proof of income, and are approved for roughly 6 months before renewing.
- Anyone can apply. Approval is based on your household income and size, but there is no insurance requirement and immigration status does not disqualify you.
- It covers Yale New Haven Health only. Not Fair Haven, Cornell Scott, or other community health centers.
- It works on bills you already have. Free Care can be applied retroactively, so an existing hospital bill is a reason to apply rather than a reason not to.
Our Medical Debt & Insurance Counseling team will walk you through the application the first time. See the step-by-step Free Care guide for the whole form, section by section.
YNHH central call center
For questions about a Free Care application, your approval status, or a specific YNHH bill, call Patient Financial Services directly.
(855) 547-4584Monday–Friday, 7:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Some Specialties Come to Us
Not every specialty visit means leaving HAVEN. We now run three specialty clinics inside our own Saturday session, so patients can see a specialist without the cost, the travel, or the wait that usually stands in the way.
Dermatology
Our first specialty clinic, launched in 2025. Skin conditions, rashes, lesions, and chronic skin disease.
Nephrology
Kidney function and chronic kidney disease, often alongside diabetes and blood pressure management.
Neurology
Headaches, nerve conditions, and neurological symptoms that need a specialist eye.
These clinics run on select Saturdays and are booked through your care team, not by walking in. Everything else goes out as a referral, which is what the rest of this page is about.
How the Referral Process Works
Referrals at HAVEN are handled flexibly depending on your situation. In some cases, our care team will initiate the referral on your behalf and coordinate directly with YNHH. In others, we will guide you through the steps to reach out yourself, with our support along the way.
Either way, you will not navigate this alone. Our team will:
- Identify the right specialist for your needs
- Work with YNHH Free Care to explore free or reduced-cost options
- Help you understand what to expect and what to bring to your appointment
- Follow up with you as part of your ongoing care at HAVEN
Think you may need a specialist? Talk to your HAVEN care team and we’ll figure out the next step together.
Start With Free Care
A referral you cannot afford is not a referral. Getting a YNHH Free Care application filed is the single most useful thing you can do before you need a specialist, and our MDIC team will do it with you.