What Is DPC?

Putting the Patient First

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DPC stands for Direct Primary Care and transforms how primary care is paid for and delivered by totally removing insurance from the doctor-patient relationship. 

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By removing insurance as a third-party payer of primary care, you now have a direct relationship with your provider. The decisions you make together about your care are not influenced by a large insurance company, hospital network, or physicians clinic. 

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The low monthly price you pay for your HealthPass membership gives you unlimited access to your chosen DPC.

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No co-pays. No office fees. 

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As Dr. Peffley, one of the DPCs in the HealthPass network, puts it, “DPC is like Netflix. With Netflix, you can watch as much as you want for one low price. With DPC, you can use your doctor as much as you want for one low price.” 

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For nearly any medical issue, your first contact is your DPC. With some exceptions, your DPC will be able to address your medical need in their office for no extra charge to you.

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‍In fact, we have estimated that 80-85% of all medical needs can be handled in the DPC’s office.

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The Big Differences

Time. Attention. Quality.

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With corporate insurance, most primary doctors are in charge of too many patients and given too little time to listen to or handle their concerns. 

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• The average primary care provider has around 2000 patients in their panel
• The average visit time is seven minutes
• The average patient has to wait 24 days to see a provider in-person

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With the DPC model, providers care for a smaller group of patients, allowing them the time and freedom to build meaningful and effective doctor-patient relationships. 

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• The average DPC clinic has only 677 patients in their panel
• The average visit time is between 30 and 45 minutes 
• Patients with an urgent need can be seen on the same day, with most visits scheduled within one week 

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Plus, if you have a simple question, you can email or call your DPC directly for a fast, direct answer. 

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Although the DPC model is relatively new, it is becoming increasingly popular, with new clinic locations growing at 35% year-over-year nationwide.

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DPC Controls Costs

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At HealthPass, we utilize the DPC model because it is obviously better care. But DPC is also incredibly useful since it helps control healthcare costs. 

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Again, 80-85% of all medical needs can be addressed in your DPC's office at no additional cost to HealthPass members. This alone is a vital tool for controlling costs since neither the provider nor the patient has to incur additional costs to treat the vast majority of needs. 

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The DPC model also helps keep the cost of outside-of-the-office care low. If your DPC needs to order labs, imaging, or other specialist services, they likely have direct contracts with many of the providers at pre-negotiated rates. So, when you pay cash for these services, you will know the price beforehand (a rarity within the legacy healthcare system) and be guaranteed to pay a reliably low out-of-pocket price. 

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Why Do DPCs Partner with HealthPass?

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Many primary care providers are leaving the current insurance-first model and going independent to set up their own DPC practice. 

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They understand the current system is not working. Patients and providers are frustrated. Costs are skyrocketing and show no signs of slowing. Outcomes are poor and getting worse. 

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Like us at HealthPass, they want to build something better and put patients back in control of their healthcare decisions. More and more DPCs are choosing to partner with us at HealthPass because we have the same mission. 

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We are building something new, different, and better together.

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