What is Direct Primary Care (DPC)?

Direct Primary Care (DPC) is an innovative model of health care that does not bill insurance. Patients pay a monthly fee and in return receive individualized, full-service primary care from their personal provider. Care includes preventive exams and management of most acute and chronic conditions.

What are the benefits?

Patients in DPC have a better relationship with their provider. They have a direct line of communication with their own provider and can expect same day or next day appointments with little to no wait times. There are no copays or surprise bills. Your provider typically has more time so your visits may last 30 minutes to an hour - whatever you need. DPC providers see far less patients, so they have more time to address your needs. Improved work life balance leads to happier, more empathetic providers.

Do you accept insurance?

We do not accept insurance for visits at this time. By eliminating expensive and time-consuming insurance bureaucracy, we can keep our costs reasonable and allow the provider to spend time with you instead of paperwork.  In addition, pricing is transparent - you know exactly what you are paying for your healthcare each month.

Do I still need insurance?

While membership covers all your preventative and primary care services, insurance is still highly recommended to cover things outside of our scope like specialists, hospitalizations or emergencies. It can also be used for laboratory testing or medications which are provided at a cost by other venders. A high deductible plan is a good fit for HomeSteady Health patients: you are covered for the big things, and the membership is cheaper than traditional doctor’s visits.

Won’t that get too costly?

No. In fact if you have a high deductible plan which is very common these days, you will actually save money by using DPC over traditional services that charge you high premiums and may force you to have multiple follow ups or unnecessary tests. We also aim to save you costly trips to the urgent care and ER. With improved access you will get care when you need it - instead of waiting for it to become a more serious, thus more expensive, issue. Consistently, data shows that patients in DPC practices have fewer hospital stays, ER visits, specialty visits, advanced imaging and unnecessary surgeries, which saves on copays even for those with the best insurance.

What about Medicare or Medicaid?

Our membership is not covered by Medicaid or Medicare. By law, we are unable to submit billing for the services we provide to these insurance providers. If you become a member you will still receive medical savings through your insurance. Medicare or Medicaid will still cover most of your prescriptions or anything that is done outside of the DPC office. 

Can I still see my specialists?

Of course! While our memberships fees don’t cover speciality care we work with them to offer lower prices if you are not covered by your insurance. Additionally, our providers have the time to help you with the coordination of care with the system beyond our primary care services.

What if I am not a member, can I still be seen?

You must be a member to receive care from HomeSteady Health. However, we may make exceptions for your first visit for acute needs on a case by case basis.

How is labwork done?

Some screening labwork is including in your membership. We draw the labs and send them out to a lab to be analyzed. Additional labwork will have additional costs, which can be covered by your insurance. If you do not have insurance, we can assist you in getting heavily discounted prices from the lab.

Do you see children?

Yes! Memberships start at 3 years old and are heavily discounted when packaged with adult and family memberships.

Do you see patients with chronic pain?

Patients with chronic pain are better served by a pain management specialist. However, we can still you see your for your basic primary care needs.

Can I still get care away from home?

Yet another benefit of DPC is that we can still take care of you even when you are away on vacation!

How do I cancel?

You can cancel membership anytime with 30 day written notice. However, if you rejoin the practice, there is a $200 reenrollment fee and if there is a waitlist you will have to wait for an opening in the practice.

What is a nurse practitioner (NP)?

Our care is provided by Board Certified Family Nurse Practitioners. NPs are highly educated nurses that have been providing primary, acute and specialty health care to patients of all ages and walks of life for nearly half a century. NPs assess patients, order and interpret diagnostic tests, make diagnoses and initiate and manage treatment plans — including prescribing medications. Millions of patients choose NPs as their health care providers, with visits totaling more than 1.06 billion annually. NPs are quickly becoming the health partner of choice for millions of Americans. As clinicians that blend clinical expertise in diagnosing and treating health conditions with an added emphasis on disease prevention and health management, NPs bring a comprehensive perspective and personal touch to health care. What sets NPs apart from other health care providers is their unique emphasis on the health and well-being of the whole person. With a focus on health promotion, disease prevention and health education and counseling, NPs guide patients in making smarter health and lifestyle choices, which in turn can lower patients' out-of-pocket costs.

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