Lots of people ask why our providers don’t see patients who are not members. The purpose of our practice is to be there for our patients when they are sick but also to help them be well for the long term. The membership gives us the opportunity to take calls and emails and spend time with our patients. It gives the patient the incentive to reach out early when they have a problem and it gives the doctor the incentive, not just to get the patient into the clinic but to help the be healthy. In most healthcare practices, the healthcare provider only gets paid when people are sick which made us ask, shouldn’t someone have an incentive to keep people well?
Direct Primary Care is an alternative to conventional insurance based primary care. Rather than going through all the haggles and hassles of insurance claims and prior authorizations, we establish direct relationships with our patients through a monthly membership fee. Come in as often as necessary, everything we do in office is included in membership and things that aren’t (i.e. labs, imaging and medication) are a straightforward and transparent 10% markup. DPC, as it is known, coupled with a high deductible/catastrophic medical insurance plan is becoming a widespread solution to increasing deductibles, out of pocket expenses and overuse in Urgent and Emergent Care.
All office visits and yearly physical exams are included in your monthly membership fee. This means that all office visits, including your yearly physical exam, is included at no additional cost to you.
You are welcome to cancel your membership at any time as long as you give us 30 day notice. There is no cost associated with cancelling a membership. However, should you choose to re-enroll AFTER a cancelled membership, there is a $75 re-enrollment fee. We don’t have long term contracts with our members, but have found that people who understand this system and this model choose not to leave because of the comfort, the safety, and the quality health care we provide.
Increased Access
If it’s important for you to have your questions answered and for your doctor to be available when you need him, direct primary care may be right for your family. We are able to spend more than double the average time other doctors spend with their patients. We have same day or next day appointments available for most urgent matters and we will even do after hours visits and home visits if necessary.
Decreased out of pocket expenses
Most of our patients not only get more access to their doctor but they also save money, sometimes hundreds of dollars because we help people avoid urgent care and ER visits, have no visit copays and offer wholesale labs, imaging and medications.
Better Continuity
The doctors in the urgent care and emergency room don’t know you or your history. Seeing your own doctors can be very important in finding the best solutions for your health.
While every patient’s situation is unique, it is likely that many patients will save money at our practice because we can handle the vast majority of your health issues and concerns.
Across the country, research and published findings show the direct primary care model can lead to:
• Less need for expensive testing
• Less unnecessary medications
• Fewer specialty referrals
• Fewer emergency and hospital visits
• Savings on labs and imaging
By switching to a higher deductible, lower premium plan, we can actually help many of our patients save money.
We also have negotiated deep discounts with local labs and radiology providers for our patients who choose to pay cash for these services. AND you will know what the price will be BEFORE any such service is performed.
We do not manage chronic pain or keep chronic pain (opioid) medications in the clinic. We also do not provide obstetrics care, though you can get regular well-woman checks including pap smears and long-term birth control placement at our clinic. We do not do DOT physicals.
