Great question… and one of the most common questions we get when explaining our practice to potential patients. Many people, when they hear about paying a monthly fee to see a doctor, automatically think of concierge medicine. Unfortunately, there is a negative stereotype about concierge medicine (that it’s only for the rich), that then gets transferred to the Direct Primary Care model. There are many similarities. Both models employ an out of pocket monthly fee for better access to a doctor, longer visits, a better relationship with a physician, etc. There have also been studies showing a reduction in health care costs, largely due to a decrease in hospitalizations and other expensive visits, for both concierge medicine and Direct Primary Care. However, there are two major differences: 1) Price: Concierge practices often cost a couple hundred dollars a month, with the majority $200 a month and higher, regardless of age. Some, which cater to the uber rich, are thousands of dollars a month. And this is just the monthly fee and does not take into account any out of pocket costs per a patient’s specific insurance plan (we’ll get to this more below). Because of this, there is a limited percentage of the population that can actually afford to join a concierge practice on top of what they already pay for insurance.
Direct Primary Care practices, on the other hand, often employee a tiered pricing structure by age, and the vast majority of patients pay less than $100 per month. Our average cost per patient is about $75 per month. This means that for less than the cost of a cell phone and less than buying a coffee every day, patients get direct access to a physician and all of the other DPC benefits we’ve discussed before. 2) Insurance: Concierge practices still deal with insurance. They charge the monthly fee to cover direct and same day access to the doctor, longer visits, etc. But they still bill a patients insurance for office visits, procedures, etc. This means that if you have a deductible or copay, you’ll end up paying more out of pocket costs on top of the monthly fee to be a member of that type of practice. Direct Primary Care practices cut out insurance all together. At Direct Doctors specifically, we do not charge any copays for visits, procedures, vaccines, etc, and do not bill insurance companies for anything that we do. While most of our patients have insurance, we do not utilize it for any of our comprehensive primary care services. There is one low transparent monthly fee that covers everything we can do in our office. Because we have the time and are taking patient finances into consideration so often, we can also help patients save money on labs, imaging and especially medications which can be huge savings for some families. Some patients save more money per month on medications than they pay to be members of our practice! Hopefully this summary gives a better understanding of how Direct Primary Care and Concierge Medicine are different. We’d love to discuss this, and all aspects of our practice, further with you. And, as always, our patients say it best!
9 Comments
Mary Lou Scott
2/18/2017 07:32:10 am
401 423 1498 home. 4 Top I'M The Mark, Jamestown, R.I. /. I'm interested in speaking with you regarding being my PCP
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Perry Scott
2/19/2017 09:02:36 am
Please call me @ 401 339 4852 regarding joining DD
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9/1/2021 11:43:26 am
It's good to know that concierge medicine still deals with insurance. I was afraid that I'd have to pay for it on my own. But it is more affordable with insurance.
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2/9/2022 11:39:47 pm
My favorite part of this article is insurance is still dealt with in concierge procedures. The monthly price covers immediate and same-day access to the doctor, as well as lengthier appointments and other services. Someone recently told me about this and it is different from what I understand. Thanks for helping me understand concierge laboratory services.
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3/11/2022 06:46:14 pm
I'm glad that this article talked about the importance of taking notes of your insurance plan to make the most out of it. My cousin told me that he is looking for more personalized health care for my uncle, and he asked if I have any suggestions. Thanks to this helpful article and I'll be sure to tell him that he should consult a trusted concierge medical service as they can provide all the attention my uncle needs.
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7/19/2022 08:15:43 pm
I'm glad that this article talked about the importance of knowing the monthly fee because it could be different because of other services. The other night, my cousin told me that he was looking for more personalized health care for my uncle because of his old age, and he asked if I had any suggestions. Thanks to this informative article, I'll be sure to tell him that he should consult a trusted concierge medical service as they can provide all the attention my uncle needs.
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10/6/2022 06:25:02 pm
I am glad that you have come up with this kind of article. I greatly appreciate this and found it very informative and worth reading. Thanks for posting.
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11/9/2022 06:15:17 pm
It's good to know that concierge services cost a couple hundred dollars a month. I'm hoping that I can invest in a concierge service that will handle my insurance. I'll make sure to find a service that is a reasonable price.
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AuthorLauren Hedde, DO; James Hedde, DO and Mark Turshen, MD are Family Physicians and Co- Founders of Direct Doctors, Inc. a Direct Primary Care Practice. Archives
February 2022
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