We came across an article called “The Rare Bipartisan Health Idea: Affordable Concierge Medicine” over on New Atlantic Ventures (navfund.com), a website promoting entrepreneurial endeavors. It makes sense that our Atlas MD style of direct care would be featured there, being as we believe healthcare can administered more effectively when coupled with free-market principles. To us it makes sense to run a business where WE are responsible for our profits and losses, WE interact with our customers directly, and WE succeed by giving them top-notch service. It so happens that in our case, doing our job well means we ensure healthy patients, something we take great pride in.
The U.S. government, too, is looking at direct primary care for the nearly 50 million people covered by the Medicare health insurance program for the elderly. According to the legislation introduced late last year by Rep. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican and physician, these ‘pilots’ would provide “monthly fee-based payments for direct primary care medical homes” for these beneficiaries. Under Cassidy’s proposed Direct M.D. Care Act, fees for Medicare beneficiaries couldn’t be more than $100 a month.
According to Jay Keese, a Direct Primary Care Coalition lobbyist in Washington, “Republicans like that it stresses consumerism, patient responsibility and can cut costs. Democrats like the potential to bring people of modest means a new care model previously only within reach to the wealthy.”
It’s good news that our model is being brought to Congress. We, of course, are NOT personally interested in red tape. However, if someone wants to take influence from our model’s success, we’re not about to get in the way.
More Reading
“The Rare Bipartisan Health Idea: Affordable Concierge Medicine” | New Atlantic Ventures