The Doctor was In

Stethoscope Unsplash Naidoo Jade Photography

 I met my new doctor last Monday.  My employer changed our health insurance to self-insured Direct Primary Care (DPC).

 

 In direct primary care, the doctor provides primary services in exchange for a monthly fee.  The reason for this visit was a general check-up and to review my medical history.

 Doctor K met with me for an hour, a few minutes getting acquainted but the balance discussing my health, preventive screenings, and answering my questions.

 

Advocate MD and their providers don't charge beyond the monthly fee (based on the contract my employer made with them, it could be different for individuals).  We have no annual deductible; no coinsurance; no out-of-pocket maximum; and no copay.  Furthermore, the doctor gives you a card with their phone number to call or text directly if there is a concern and you're not sure whether you should go to an urgent care clinic.  

That includes lab tests and screenings, even MRI, CT, or PET scans in their network with no out-of-pocket cost.  How?  Well, not every member is going to need all those services at the same time and the monthly fee comes in like clockwork.

 

If I need to be admitted into the hospital or require surgery, additional insurance coverage helps us manage that. 

I had a great relationship with my previous doctor.  However, if my 'annual physical' included a question about something care-focused, I'd get a bill.  In the visit last Monday, it was a similar but I felt a freedom to speak and ask questions I never would have asked previous doctors.

One detail I've left out, my new doctor is a woman.  Other than my first doctor in Madison, who stopped being my doctor when our insurance coverage changed, I've never had a female doctor.  She is great.  An experienced doctor, she left a clinic to focus on her patients as people, not numbers.  

 

That was clear in my first visit.  Not that I'm wanting or needing more doctor visits but it's refreshing to have a relationship with such an important advisor.  That's the 'secret sauce' available in Direct Primary Care.