The emerging popularity of the direct primary care movement restores the genuine connection between the healthcare provider and patient. As a result, patients achieve their optimal health and wellness goals by putting medical providers and the patients they serve in charge of healthcare decisions and eliminating interference from insurance companies.
Balanced Healthcare is part of a growing movement in healthcare reform. By offering patients unparalleled access to their healthcare provider, we allow patients to take back control of their health and medical decisions. If you’re curious about direct primary care, learn more about this increasingly popular healthcare model.
What is direct primary care?
The direct primary care healthcare model offers a meaningful alternative to fee-for-service insurance billing. Patients pay a monthly fee to cover all primary care services.
Healthcare providers in a direct primary care practice have the freedom to focus attention, time, and effort on patients directly, removing the need for insurance approvals and non-medical administration involvement in care. Consequently, patients receive individualized care specific to their needs, not the average needs of those with a similar condition.
How does a direct primary care practice differ from traditional practices?
One of the most significant differences patients who switch to direct primary care clinics see is their healthcare provider. Since a doctor’s income no longer depends on how often a patient visits the office and how many patients visit their doctor daily, the focus shifts to keeping patients healthy.
Direct Primary Care allows healthcare providers to reduce their overall number of patients and focus on achieving optimal health. Everyone benefits from fewer patients to manage as the provider can offer more quality care to members.
Why Choose a Direct Primary Care Practice?
In short, patients choosing direct primary care receive both financial savings and more time and access to their healthcare providers. Balanced Healthcare offers direct access to Cora, your healthcare provider. In moving to a direct primary care clinic, you’ll enjoy:
• Full transparency in costs and fees
• Same-day or next-day appointments
• Access to your healthcare provider almost anytime
• Longer appointments
• More control over your healthcare decisions
Most importantly, direct primary care clinics accept fewer patients than traditional practices, so your provider gets the chance to know you and make recommendations that genuinely serve your individual needs.
Why Are Healthcare Providers Choosing Direct Primary Care?
Fee-for-service care often carries a lot of bureaucracy and stress for healthcare providers who entered the field to treat and heal patients. In addition, insurance frequently requires prior authorizations, billing headaches, and treating more patients in less time.
The direct primary care model offers providers the chance to form authentic relationships with their patients. Studies show a trusted relationship between medical providers and patients leads to better treatment options and successes.
What Services Are Offered by Direct Primary Care?
Balanced Healthcare offers members all the services your primary care provider and an urgent care clinic do for an affordable monthly fee. These services include:
• Complete annual health assessment and physical exam
• Treatment of acute illnesses like strep throat, colds, and flu
• Managing recommended preventative screenings
• Care for mental health conditions like depression or anxiety
• Managing chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease
• Treating injuries and performing minor procedures
• Providing wellness care, including weight loss and stress management
• Directing specialist care for seamless continuity
Find further information about the services Balanced Healthcare provides members here.
How Many Patients Are Seen in a Day?
Most direct primary care clinics see five to ten patients a day. Fewer daily appointments allow for visits averaging an hour in length.
How Much Does Direct Primary Care Cost?
At Balanced Healthcare, we offer complete transparency in our fees, which we designed to be affordable and straightforward. Our monthly payments are similar in price to your monthly cell phone bill, but without the contract, enrollment fees, termination fees, and other extras.
Balanced Healthcare memberships offer an unprecedented level of care, including same-day or next-day appointments and personal access to your provider. In addition, for services not included in our monthly fees, we provide substantial discounts through our relationships with local laboratories and radiology centers.
We also offer certain medications in-house for wholesale prices, saving you money and a trip to the pharmacy. We strive to have our fees pay for themselves so that you feel the actual value of being a member of Balanced Healthcare.
Are There Any Hidden Fees?
Most of the care our members receive have no fees at all. However, if we recommend outside services or non-covered services, we commit to full transparency with pricing and will work with you to find discounts and upfront affordable pricing.
Why Eliminate Insurance Payments?
In traditional practices, doctors spend a tremendous amount of time on administrative tasks, including insurance paperwork, lengthy calls with insurance companies to gain approval for treatments, and documentation to prove care is necessary and appropriate.
By limiting or eliminating insurance involvement from direct primary care, your healthcare provider has the freedom to focus on their most important task, taking care of patients. Fee-for-service or traditional third-party payer billing models allow money to drive most medical decisions. As a result, patient visits are more frequent and shorter. In addition, they offer less personalized treatment plans, with the insurance provider, not the medical provider, dictating what type of care a patient should receive.
If I Join Balanced Healthcare, Do I Still Need Insurance?
Yes. Patients should maintain a major medical insurance plan, ideally with a health savings account (HSA). Traditional insurance is necessary for unforeseen circumstances and serious illnesses.
Insurance companies often hinder routine medical care like primary and preventative care services that limit access to providers, shorten visit lengths, and raise fees. However, insurance is necessary for hospitalizations, ER visits, surgeries, and other medical services beyond routine care.
Fortunately, because the services offered at Balanced Healthcare meet most medical needs of members, many patients switch to a higher-deductible, lower-cost insurance plan allowing patients to save money while still receiving better care. Balanced Healthcare can connect you with an insurance representative who can work with you to customize a plan that fits your needs while saving substantial costs.
Do You Share My Information with Insurance Providers?
No. Balanced Healthcare will never disclose your medical records to a third party unless you specifically ask that we do so.
What If I Decide to Cancel My Membership?
While we always strive to offer you affordable, high-level care and a relationship that endures for years to come, we understand that circumstances may require you to cancel your membership. Of course, you can cancel at any time.
Will I Still Benefit from Joining Balanced Healthcare If I’m Healthy?
Yes. We believe that everyone, even people in perfectly good help, can benefit from customized healthcare. Our ultimate goal is to offer you compassionate, comprehensive care that addresses problems before they arise. Your overall health and wellness are our top priority.
Oftentimes, patients postpone medical appointments due to high co-pays, unexpected fees, long wait times, and difficulty booking appointments. Additionally, most ER or urgent care trips aren’t actual emergencies but rather medical needs that require immediate attention during times that most doctors consider “after hours.”
With unprecedented availability, no long waits, quick scheduling appointments, and preventative care options, even the healthiest patients save money through direct primary care.
Does Balanced Healthcare Offer Direct Primary Care for Children?
Yes. We care for patients of all ages. In addition, because our members can text and call Cora directly, families experience significant advantages after switching to Balanced Healthcare. For example, children’s illnesses, such as ear infections and strep throat, frequently present during off-hours and may benefit from a phone call just as much if not more than a visit to urgent care.
Joining Balanced Healthcare’s direct primary care model is like having a medical professional as a close friend or family member. Cora delivers high-quality care in an affordable, comprehensive plan that serves patients and their needs.
If you’re located in or around the Denver, Colorado area and searching for “direct primary care near me,” you’ve found your match. Contact Balanced Healthcare today.
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