Remember that post about what would happen if restaurants billed like hospitals? Well, in another similar yet oh-so-different comparison, we see what happens when the billing process is stuck under the table like gum. In “What if Restaurants, like Hospitals, Refused to Share Their Prices?” by KQED, we learn that Americans hold a serious grudge against the hospital billing process. There’s seemingly no better way to express our frustration than putting our angst side by side with something we love – food.
It all started with this analogy shared on Twitter:
Christina Farr, the author of the post (and this article) said she was “floored by the volume and breadth of responses, which ranged from laugh-out-loud funny to downright depressing.” At the end of the day, though, it lights a fire under our… well, you know, to tell more people about DPC. Because as incredible as it sounds, DPC docs (and patients!) don’t have to worry about wonky billing practices, misleading costs, networks, or any other billing shenanigans for that matter.
Billing with DPC is structured just like the rest of of the model – it’s based on an open patient-doctor relationship built on trust. Patients know what they’re being charged before they’re charged. Not only is it a totally transparent process, but it’s reliable and consistent.
We’re not ones to walk away from a problem, but this is one issue we’re thrilled to sidestep in lieu of something better.