+ What is Direct Primary Care?

Direct Primary Care or DPC is a model of medicine that has been around for well over decade. It has become a growing movement of passionate physicians focusing on restoring the physician patient relationship and providing excellent healthcare at an affordable price. It gives patient’s direct access to their doctor, as well as an appropriate amount of time to really address illness and prevent disease. How is this possible you might ask? Well, by limiting the size of the doctor's patient panel, the patient is able to get the time they truly need and deserve. Instead of a panel of 4000 patients being seen in 5-10 minutes intervals, you have 400-600 patients being seen at 30-60 minute intervals. And instead of insurance denials and going through multiple administrative staff, you deal directly with your doctor. You can call, text, video chat, or email your doctor directly. You get same day or next day visits when you need them. It’s healthcare that makes sense. You simply pay a monthly membership fee, which covers your basic care. This also allows the doctor to provide cost savings to you on medications, labs, imaging and other services and procedures that are usually significantly overpriced. No insurance. No copays. Just you and the doc.

+ Do you take insurance?

In order to provide direct access and discounted services, we do NOT bill insurance. In the United States, we have become so accustomed to everything in healthcare requiring insurance or else it's too expensive. Sometimes it's hard to imagine getting healthcare without insurance. Some people avoid going to the doctor for this very reason. By NOT billing insurance, we are able to remove many of the barries that prevent doctors from providing high quality care in the traditional medical system. You don't have to worry about surprise bills or insurance denials at Basil Family medicine. You know what you are being charged up front and our rates are significantly cheaper than the local hospital!

It may seem scary not being able to use your insurace for our services, but we promise you that the care you will receive will be worth far more than your monthly payment. It will also likely help you save money. For example, many insurances have a deductible that must be met in order for insurace to pay for your healthcare services. Many people pay thousands of dollars out of pocket before their insurance every pays a dime. Our annual fee is often less than the cost of most annual deductables, and you never have to pay a copay for your visits at our office. No matter how many times you see us in a month, your monthly fee is still the same.

+ What is a "DO" and what is osteopathic medicine?

A DO is a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine; a fully licensed physician who is able to practise medicine in any speciality of medicine -- Just like an MD. Osteopathic doctors also receive special training in the musculoskeletal system, which allows for diagnosis and treatment of common illnesses with Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy (OMT)

Osteopathic Medicine focuses on looking beyond symptoms and disease alone and taking the whole person into account -- mind, body, and spirit. An osteopathic trained physician aims to partner with the patient to prevent you from getting sick, but when you are sick we treat the whole person, not just the symptoms. Hands on treatment through OMT can also be used to diagnose illness and injury and increase the body’s natural tendency towards self-healing.

+ Is the membership the same as insurance?

Your membership will cover your primary care needs, but it is NOT insurance. We do not sell insurance. We recommend (but do not require) that our patients have insurance to cover other major health expenses that would not fall under their primary care. This might include things like referrals, emergency care, surgery etc. See our “connect” tab to reach out if you have more questions.

+ Why do I need to pay a monthly membership fee?

The monthly membership fee allows us to provide high quality care without the headache of insurance or the need for administrative staff and special services. It lets us remove many of the barriers between the doctor and the patient that currently exist in the traditional medical system. The monthly fee covers the cost of your basic care. It also allows us to keep your cost affordable, negotiate the best rates for labs and imaging, and provide a variety of medications at a fraction of what you would pay at the local pharmacy. Think of it like your Costco or Sams Club membership, you join the club and get access to special pricing and savings, which ends up saving you far more than you would have otherwise spent.

+ Will there be extra fees not included in my membership?

Your basic care is all included in your membership, things like an annual wellness exam, sick visits and follow up visits, simple suturing, wound care etc. There are services that are not routine that will cost an additional fee. You will know exactly what that fee is and it can be paid in office at the time of service. You will also get great discounts on stocked medications, labs, imaging, and OMT.

+ How do I sign up?

We’re so glad you asked! Check out the JOIN NOW tab or click here.