In case you missed it: Obamacare is severely holding DPC back from succeeding The company points to an analysis of insurance claims data for 4,000 Qliance patients covered by employer benefit plans showing they had 27% fewer emergency room visits, 60% fewer inpatient hospital days and 20% fewer claims than non-Qliance patients working for the same employers. Qliance, which operates seven clinics, including one that exclusively serves Seattle firefighters, says its innovative approach has increased patient satisfaction, improved outcomes and driven down costs. Next: DPC may not be the best option for all patients or practices For a flat age-adjusted monthly fee, Qliance members get 24/7 access to primary care doctors and health care teams for “the care you need when you need it.” Today, while only a small percentage of the country’s 926,000 physicians are involved in this type of membership-based practice model, a growing number have embraced direct primary care-from small offices to large mass market practices like Qliance, the practice in Seattle that Bliss helped establish in 2007. In the news: Bill could allow health saving account use for DPC The result, according to Bliss, has been a decline in the perceived value of primary care, a massive dependency on medical technology and a focus on higher-cost medical procedures over prevention and results-oriented care. “To a very real extent,” Bliss told Forbes several years ago, “when patients do not pay or control the payment to their physicians, their power and influence in health care declines.” To Garrison Bliss, a Seattle internist and one of the early leaders of the direct primary care movement, the changes in the way we pay for healthcare have had a profound effect. Today, insurance mostly dictates the way we pay for healthcare-from basic primary care to hospital stays and treatment for cancer and other catastrophic illnesses. In some respects, direct primary care (DPC) harkens back to the way medicine was practiced decades ago when patients paid their physician directly.įurther reading: Is DPC a viable way to MACRA-proof your practice? Glen Stream, MD, FAAFP, MBIIt’s often called “concierge medicine for the masses,” the colloquial name given to direct primary care, a growing practice model that charges patients a flat monthly fee-averaging $25 to $85 a month-for office visits, lab tests and even phone or email communications. The views expressed in these blogs are those of their respective contributors and do not represent the views of Medical Economics or UBM Medica.
He serves as the president and board chair of Family Medicine for America’s Health.
ANOTHER TOMORROW FALLOUT 4 SERIES
The series continues with this blog by Glen Stream, MD, FAAFP, MBI, a family physician practicing in La Quinta, California, who is also past president of the American Academy of Family Physicians. These blogs are an opportunity for bloggers to engage with readers about a topic that is top of mind, whether it is practice management, experiences with patients, the industry, medicine in general, or healthcare reform. Editor's Note: Welcome to Medical Economics' blog section which features contributions from members of the medical community.
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