FAQ & Support

You need a provider's order, which is a clinical and billing requirement for diagnostic imaging rather than a Big Sky policy. You do not need insurance prior authorization to get on our schedule. If you do not have an order, your primary care provider, a specialist, an urgent care clinic or a physical therapist can write one. More detail: do you need a referral for imaging in Montana.

In Montana, yes. Physical therapists can refer for imaging, which surprises a lot of patients and a fair number of clinicians. If you are already seeing a PT for the problem, that is often the fastest route to an order. See can physical therapists refer for imaging in Montana.

It depends on the study. Abdominal and gallbladder ultrasound usually needs fasting beforehand, and pelvic studies often need a full bladder. Vascular, thyroid and soft tissue ultrasound generally need no preparation. X-ray and EKG need none. We tell you exactly what applies when we schedule, so nobody gets turned away for eating breakfast.

Most ultrasound studies run 20 to 45 minutes; X-ray and EKG are quicker. Images go to our teleradiology partner Rapid Radiology and the report returns to the ordering provider, with most X-ray reads back the same day and echocardiogram reads typically within 24 hours. If a study is urgent, say so when the order is placed and we will flag it.

For ultrasound we publish it. The 2026 price list gives a cash price for all 43 ultrasound, echo and vascular studies, from $170.03 to $806.65, and every price includes the radiologist's reading fee, so there is no second bill weeks later. Those are self-pay numbers. On Medicare, Medicaid or commercial insurance the study is billed to the payer and what you owe depends on your plan.

Those are not on the published list. Call (855) 249-9729 and we will quote them rather than print a number that may not apply to your situation.

Cash pay is accepted, and Medicare and Medicaid are accepted. Coverage depends on the patient, the payer and the specific order, so we confirm the details when the referral comes in. Because we do not require an insurance authorization to schedule, self-pay patients are not waiting behind anyone else's paperwork.

Yes. Every Big Sky hub is also a mobile base. We bring imaging to homes, clinics, nursing homes, assisted living, rural sites and correctional facilities, or you can come to one of our regional clinics. If travel is the obstacle, whether that is ninety miles of highway, a wheelchair or a January storm, the study can come to you instead.

No. We offer X-ray, ultrasound, echocardiograms and EKGs. If your order calls for one of the others we are not your stop, and we would rather say so here than waste your afternoon. See the scans we do not offer and where they fit, or the specific guides for MRI in Montana and bone density and DEXA. It is worth asking your provider whether the question can be answered by something we do offer, because plenty of them can.