Frequently asked quetions

Concierge and DPC work off a membership model either paid by the patient or sometimes the patient’s employer. Concierge clinics usually charge a retainer fee and may bill the patient’s insurance companies for covered services. DPCs, on the other hand, are independent, small businesses that work directly for patients not insurance companies, hospitals, or corporations. This allows for total price transparency!

Concierge and DPC Services:

o   Extended office visits, 30 mins or longer

o   Direct access to a physician via phone, text, and video conference

o   Same-day and next-day appointments

o   Unlimited office visits, no co-pays

DPC - An agreement is made between patients and doctors for all primary care services for a flat, low monthly payment. It is an affordable way of providing high-quality, personalized private medical care outside the current insurance-based or government-based (Medicare and Medicaid) system. This allows easier more convenient access and more time with their physician. It reduces the overhead and expenses and will enable doctors to spend their time on patient care passing the savings on to patients.

Our goal is to keep overall costs low providing high-quality care to patients of all incomes and levels of insurance coverage. This leads to fewer tests, medications, ER/urgent care/hospital visits, and overall lower total cost of care.

Other benefits include discounted in-office prescriptions, wholesale labs, pathology, and imaging (see benefits).

In both models, patients enjoy the individual attention and communication they deserve from their physicians. Physicians are also better able to focus on patient care with fewer distractions or burnout

All primary care such as; annual wellness exams, pap smears, basic office procedures and testing, along with treatment of acute/chronic illnesses, minor injuries and much more.

It also includes:

- unlimited office visits with no copays

- direct access to your doctor via phone, text, or email

- same day or next day visits

- extended and relaxed office visits

- discounts on pathology, medications & labs

All of this without the need of insurance

Specialized labs,in office injections and dispensed medications.

• However, you can expect them all at a discounted rate.

Membership is $99/month.

Although there will be some paperwork and agreements to sign when you first join, you will NOT be required to sign a contract that commits you to a certain time frame. We ask for a 3-month minimum commitment for us to partner with you to help optimize your health.

We expect to have an open, honest, respectful relationship with our patients. We require a 30-day notice if you wish to cancel. At that time the staff will email you a cancelation email to sign. We understand that things happen. If you choose to rejoin, you may be charged a re-enrollment fee.

Yes, while the practice is growing we will see patients for a one-time fee if you are not ready to commit to a monthly membership. However, this may change in the future once the practice becomes busy. Please call before coming in to schedule an appointment.

Currently we are only seeing adults 18+ only

You will use your insurance or healthcare plan. Our goal is to provide excellent health care with accessibility and convenience and we seek a reduction in hospitalizations and specialty referrals.

In those instances, we will work closely with the hospitalist in providing post-discharge care and will work closely with the specialists in working as a team

No. Patient privacy is a natural benefit of this medical model. We will never provide any third party with a copy of your records, unless you specifically ask us to do so or if Innovation Health is subject to subpoena or search warrant.

Yes, during office hours you may speak to the office staff, and if there is something urgent you may request a call back from your provider if the staff is unable to help you.

However, if you call the member number after hours for an urgent issue and leave a message for one of our providers, they will personally return your call. Once you become a member, in your agreement you will receive the member-only number for the staff and provider.

No. The purpose of direct care is direct patient-physician care, no middleman, no insurance company to impose arbitrary measures to increase their profits and decrease your quality of care. The direct nature of this model frees us from the typical contractual agreements that prevent physicians in traditional practice from offering wholesale prices on laboratory tests, medications.

Not for our services, but you can utilize your insurance for labs, imaging, specialist appointments, and medication.

If your plan requires you to use a particular facility, just let us know.

WE DO NOT DO ANY BILLING OF INSURANCE.

WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY BILLS YOU MAY GET FROM YOUR INSURANCE.

Many times, patients purchase expensive insurance plans that require little or no co-pay, but in return it does not cover lab or prescription costs. However, with Innovation Health your monthly fee covers unlimited office visits and there are NEVER copays. Plus, our patients have access to wholesale medications and labs sometimes at a 90% discount from retail pharmacies! Patients may find it worthwhile to change from an expensive health insurance plan to a basic health insurance plan (high deductible) to save money.

At a traditional primary care office, you will pay a co-pay to see your physician and on top of that, you will have an office visit charge of about $150 toward your insurance. That charge is not including blood work, additional testing, or procedures done at the visit. Our blood draw, procedures, and additional in-office testing are covered under the monthly fee (additional charge for lab results, pathology, and medication). There are no co-pays or office visit charges. We are fully transparent regarding charges to our patients.

Most insurances are high deductible plans in which most patients never reach that in a year so unfortunately there are a lot of out-of-pocket charges.

Therefore, Direct Primary Care is best for patients with high deductible plans to keep their costs low.

We 100% accept both FSA and HSA

Many people believe they should only treat illness when it happens instead of identifying and preventing disease before it starts. Our goal is not only to see you when you are ill but to concentrate efforts on preventative care with long-term health and wellness goals. Our focus as primary care providers is to help patients find health and wellness on a day-to-day basis. If you would like to discuss wellness, nutrition, dieting, or exercise plans that are right for you, this is an added component of the membership model.

We all benefit from services tailored to our needs, and your health care should be no different. We will provide you with the care you need to optimize your health and reach your wellness goals. Let’s be honest, at some point, you will be sick or injured and need acute care. When that happens, you will have immediate access to your doctor who knows your personal health history completely and will take your circumstances into account when developing a treatment plan. A DPC membership also allows you access to your physician for acute complaints and prevents costly trips to the ER or Urgent Care. Our providers will do their best to keep you out of the urgent care or ER. If you save one ER visit, your yearly fee will pay for itself.

It works especially well for those who want to participate in improving their health and staying well, including:

• Patients desiring easy and direct communication with their doctor.
• Patients who want a doctor who provides personal care and truly cares for their patient.
• Patients who want a doctor to address the root cause of illness, not just treat the symptoms.
• Patients who enjoy unhurried and extended office visits.
• People with busy lifestyles. Often issues can be addressed without the need for an office visit (text, phone, email or video).
• Those with high insurance premiums/high-deductible health plans or healthcare sharing plans.
• Self-insured business owners seeking to provide their employees with affordable health care while improving their well-being, simultaneously reducing health care spending.

No. This is the real thing. Quality healthcare the way you want it. This is just how healthcare looks when the middle-man is cut out. Keeping payment directly between the patient and the doctor. This keeps the price low and the care high!