Direct Primary Care: A Return to the Roots of Medicine

At Lancaster Wellness, the Direct Primary Care Model allows for more time and attention from your doctor, with a root-cause, holistic healthcare approach!!!

You may have heard of direct primary care but feel uncertain comparing direct primary care to a traditional primary care doctor’s office.

How are they similar? How are they different?

You may be wondering if primary care would benefit you.

This article will explain how direct primary care differs from traditional primary care, and why direct primary care is rapidly becoming the preferred choice for many patients and employers.

What is direct primary care?

The direct primary care model creates a direct patient-doctor relationship, allowing for mutual savings!!

Direct primary care is a model in which the middle-men (insurance companies) are replaced by a direct contract between the doctor and their patients.

This contract is typically paid monthly, quarterly, or annually.

While the physician in a direct primary care setting does not directly bill insurance for services, if you have insurance, services such as medications, labs, or diagnostic tests ordered by the physician will still be covered under your current insurance program just as they would be covered if ordered by a physician in a traditional medical setting.

Why direct primary care?

According to the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the direct primary care model has a particularly powerful advantage. As noted on the AAFP website, the direct primary care model allows “the physician and office staff to focus on the needs of the patient and improving their health outcomes rather than coding and billing.”

By cutting out the insurance companies as the middlemen, extensive time investments and overhead costs are eliminated for the doctors. This allows direct primary care doctors to manage a smaller caseload of patients and thereby, give each patient more time and consideration.

For patients with high insurance deductibles, direct primary care can eliminate large insurance co-pays, as many primary care services are covered directly under the monthly membership fee.

Common medications, procedures, and other services may be provided to direct primary care patients at either a reduced price or no additional cost over the membership fee.

More time with your doctor, fewer total costs

The direct primary care model allows more time for you with your doctor, plus flexible means of communication–telemed, text, email!

Direct primary care may be right for you if you:

• Desire to lower or eliminate co-pays on certain medications, and common medical procedures, and desire to eliminate appointment co-pays
• Wish your doctor would spend more time listening to you and really work to get to the root of your health concerns 
• Desire flexible forms of communication with your doctor, such as through telemedicine, secure text, secure email, or in-person
• Want greater flexibility when scheduling appointments (thanks to a smaller case-load, it’s typically much easier to schedule an appointment with a direct primary care doctor).

Why Lancaster Wellness?

Lancaster Wellness specializes in holistic, 360-degree health with customized fitness programs, meal plans, lifestyle interventions, and more!!

Lancaster Wellness Direct Primary Care embraces a full 360-degree view of health. Unlike many primary care doctors who simply offer standard treatments and medicines with little more than generic lifestyle recommendations, Lancaster Wellness places a strong emphasis on:

• Exercise programs customized to meet clients’ abilities and needs
• Nutrition programs for clients who desire a shift to a healthier eating lifestyle
• Sleep management with evidence-based approaches centered on identifying and addressing the root causes, including lifestyle factors
• Stress management with holistic interventions in addition to a more traditional medical approach
• Reduction or elimination of harmful substances or habits: we collaborate with clients to help eliminate adverse substances and habits that undermine our clients’ mental and physical health 
• Positive relationships: the staff at Lancaster Wellness become your coaches and cheerleaders on your path to optimal health and wellness!

Frequently asked questions concerning direct primary care

“Do I need to carry insurance if I join a direct primary clinic?”

Direct primary care is a service that covers routine medical care. A membership to direct primary care does not cover care at other medical centers such as specialist services, certain lab or diagnostic services, emergency room care, or hospital services.

Therefore, it is always advisable to keep and maintain health insurance to assist with covering these potential costs. Having health insurance is not a requirement for joining Lancaster Wellness, but it is strongly recommended.

“Can I pay for my direct primary care membership with a flexible spending account or health savings account?”

Possibly. It is best that you check with your plan to determine the conditions and limitations of your specific plan.

“How much does it cost to join?”

Enrollment fee costs are subject to change. Current pricing for a direct primary care membership in addition to the initial enrollment fee at Lancaster Wellness is $150.00 per month.

“What if I want to cancel my membership?”

You may cancel your membership at any time. Should you choose to rejoin, you will be subject to a re-enrollment fee at that time in addition to the monthly membership fee.