Civil Surgeon for I-693 Tips

[redvelvet 12]

I am now organizing my packet for AOS from K1. I had troubles finding a good civil surgeon. Here are some few tips so as to avoid paying a lot of money with regards to the I-693 form.

I suggest that you have the chest x-ray cd read by a radiologist in the Philippines then bring the x-ray report to USA for AOS. St. Lukes will not release their report on it. You will not need the CD in USA anyway.

Most of the civil surgeon will require a TB skin test but I found out that since we are born in a developing country like Philippines, most of the time, it will read as positive for TB. That is why we had x-ray first at St. Lukes. If they see a spot on the x-ray, that is the only time they will require skin test.

So, I agreed to have the skin test (paid an extra $20 for it). I had the results read in another clinic since the clinic I went to was closed on weekends.

The second clinic read it as negative (skin reaction is about 7mm). The second clinic told me that it has to be at least 10mm to be positive.

The following Monday, I got a call from the first clinic and they told me that I tested positive for the skin test. They said that it needs to be at least 5mm to be positive. I found out that it may be 5mm to be positive if you are born in USA but it has to be at least 10mm to be positive if you are born outside USA.

Now they are asking me for an x-ray report since I tested positive. I have asked around and no radiology clinic wants to read my chest x-ray CD from St. Lukes so I am planning to get a new x-ray to satisfy the requirement from the clinic I went to for this I-693 form. Which is another $90 on top of the $120 I already paid the clinic.

Some doctors will just take advantage of their patients. They knew all along that I will test positive and yet they required me to take the skin test. I hope my experience will be of some help.

[Tahoma 2,292]

Assuming you did not undergo the sputum test at St. Lukes:

1. Technically, you don't need to go to a civil surgeon if you received the customary age-appropriate vaccinations at St. Lukes (MMR, TDap, Varicella, flu) and you didn't undergo sputum collection at St. Lukes. If that's the case, you simply need to submit a copy of your DS-3025 with your AOS packet. However, some people have reported getting an RFE for not submitting an I-693 signed by a civil surgeon. So, you may want to play it safe and get your DS-3025 transcribed onto an I-693.

2. Even if you have a civil surgeon transcribe your DS-3025 onto your I-693, you don't need the civil surgeon to do anything else. You don't need to get x-rays, or have a medical exam, or have a skin test, or have any other vaccinations.

3. St. Lukes gives every patient a CD of their chest x-ray. However, you don't need the chest x-ray CD from St. Lukes or a chest x-ray from anywhere else. You don't need to submit a chest x-ray as part of your AOS packet.

4. You need to find a civil surgeon who knows what to do for K-1'ers. Chinook was a K-1'er and she had her DS-3025 transcribed onto an I-693 by a civil surgeon who charged about $35 and it took only about 15 minutes. It's that simple.

[redvelvet 12]

I did not undergo the sputum test at St. Lukes.

This doctor does not want to sign off the I-693 until I provide an x-ray report. I have called almost all the doctors in our area and they are charging from $120-200. They all require a skin test but I did not know about the 85% false positive for Filipinos before. They did not want to just transcribe the vaccination report.

[Tahoma 2,292]

I did not undergo the sputum test at St. Lukes.

This doctor does not want to sign off the I-693 until I provide an x-ray report. I have called almost all the doctors in our area and they are charging from $120-200. They all require a skin test but I did not know about the 85% false positive for Filipinos before. They did not want to just transcribe the vaccination report.

We had the same problem finding a civil surgeon who understood the needs of a K-1'er. However, we kept calling until we found one. You need to keep calling if you want to find a civil surgeon who knows the drill. Explain to them that all you want them to do is to transcribe your DS-3025 onto your I-693...nothing more.

[CristiFur 15]

I filed AOS for my wife and daughter (K1,K2) back in December and I did not submit I-693. I read the I-485 instructions and it mentioned that if you are a K1 K2 visa nd had your physical within a year and were given the needed Immunization to enter the US that there was no need to see a civil surgeon and submit I-693. I only submitted their Immunization record and that was it.

Initially I was going to look for a civil surgeon but the more I read the instruction the more it got clearer that I-693 was not needed for K1, K2 and I just decided to submit the AOS without I693. I reckon the worse that can happen would be an RFE! Thankfully we did not get an RFE and was never asked at the interview and all went well they both received their Green Card last month.

PS.. the K2 had to report to the County health department for TB evaluation once they arrived here because St Lukes had some concerns about the Xray results. They did TB blood test called QuantiFeron and Xray again on her. Still i did not submit a I-693 for her, only a copy of the results from her blood test.

[Tahoma 2,292]

I filed AOS for my wife and daughter (K1,K2) back in December and I did not submit I-693. I read the I-485 instructions and it mentioned that if you are a K1 K2 visa nd had your physical within a year and were given the needed Immunization to enter the US that there was no need to see a civil surgeon and submit I-693. I only submitted their Immunization record and that was it.

Initially I was going to look for a civil surgeon but the more I read the instruction the more it got clearer that I-693 was not needed for K1, K2 and I just decided to submit the AOS without I693. I reckon the worse that can happen would be an RFE! Thankfully we did not get an RFE and was never asked at the interview and all went well they both received their Green Card last month.

PS.. the K2 had to report to the County health department for TB evaluation once they arrived here because St Lukes had some concerns about the Xray results. They did TB blood test called QuantiFeron and Xray again on her. Still i did not submit a I-693 for her, only a copy of the results from her blood test.

:thumbs:

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

If you have all the required vaccinations marked off on your DS-3025, then skip paying for a needless medical exam, or parts of one, and just send in a copy of your DS-3025 with your AOS paperwork. Many people get approved without getting an RFE to see a civil surgeon.

[Thermite 3]

To save money you can also do the TB skin test at your local heath department for like 10 bucks and if its negative you can take the results to the CS and he will be happy with that. We redid the medical just because of my wife's TB requirement that the POE required for the CDC it was a mess they kept forgetting the skin test was negative and putting positive on everything finally we had to go to a Pulmonologist (lung doctor) he said what she has was not TB it was something that exists all around us in the air and ground.

Amazing all the CS cared about was the skin test but not the CDC. We had to do a Flu shoot and some blood work and minor checkup for 155 then when we went back for the results she needed a MMR and Tdap booster for another 150 but it was well worth it for me to get a new medical saying TB was fine.