Posted by: AtlasMD

May 26, 2014

Yep, You Can Yelp Us

Some of the country’s best doctors have the worst patient satisfaction scores.

Want to know why?

Part of training to become a fee-for-service doctor is learning how to suppress your feelings. You get good at being who people want you to be, not who they need you to be.

You’re slowly transformed into something you didn’t foresee–a Stepford doctor out to please everyone with a sycophantic grin and forcibly appealing demeanor, hoping that your patient satisfaction survey will be favorable, no matter the cost.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 21, 2014

Direct Care Subscription Savings — Wholesale Prescriptions

We keep telling them, but some critics still doubt that Direct Care can save patients a tremendous amount of money each month.

Venlafaxine tablets  (generic for Effexor) is a prime example.

Assuming you know about the coupon option, you can buy the generic for $17. However, if not, you’ll pay ~$150 cash.

Keep in mind that we can sell a monthly script of Venlafaxine tablets for $5.70.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 21, 2014

Atlas.md EMR Security Update — Patient Opt-In

Atlas.md EMR operates free from HIPAA regulation, and free from government scrutiny.

Instead patients are in the power seat to communicate as THEY see fit with their physicians.

When patients enroll, they can opt in to receive communications over non-HIPAA-compliant methods.

These non-HIPAA-compliant methods include confidential communications via SMS, email and Twitter DMs, and also general billing conducted via email.

Unless users check to allow these features, no private information will be communicated in any of these manners.

However, Atlas.md EMR will send emails to patients regarding billing, e.g. invoices, confirmation of payments, confirmation of refunds, and more.

Invoices, to the best of Atlas.md EMR’s abilities, will never contain any sensitive or compromising information.

Posted by: AtlasMD

May 6, 2014

Meet Atlas MD, Wichita’s Premiere Cash-Only Family Practice

Dr. Josh Umbehr cofounded Atlas MD in 2010 with Dr. Doug Nunamaker. Fresh out of residency, we’ve found tremendous success providing cash-only medicine — from zero subscribers to three docs and a full roster of patients.

Here, Dr. Josh speaks at the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons Conference.

If you’re new to Direct Care, this video will introduce you to an innovative insurance-free model of family medicine.

And if you want Direct Care in your area, make sure to register at “I Want Direct Care“. It only takes a name, email, and zip code to add a pin on our interactive map — and prove the demand for affordable healthcare.

Posted by: AtlasMD

March 7, 2014

Direct Care Is Actually Affordable. Direct Care Is Actually Care. Something The ACA Wishes.

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When Blue Shield of California was designing the new health plans it would offer individuals under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the insurer made a simple request to doctors and hospital in its network — lower your prices or get left behind. The insurer asked providers to accept reimbursement rates as much as 30 percent lower than what Blue Shield previously paid through plans sold on the individual market. Keep in mind that billing through a third-party-payer is about to multiply tenfold in complexity (from ~15,000 to +155,000 billing codes with ICD-10), meaning that getting paid will require more work for fee-for-service docs. In fact, providers are attending training seminars, paid for out of pocket, to learn how to deal with this billing beast.

Some providers got on board with Blue Shield, but not all of them.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

March 4, 2014

American Healthcare Deception Starts And Stops With Insurance

Dr. Sandeep Jauhar, M.D. posted a powerful blog entry on the New York Times website. He describes the ideal doctor-patient relationship, a place where intimacy transpires and information is exchanged openly and honestly. But he adds a caveat: “That is seldom the reality… Deception in the doctor-patient relationship is more common than we’d like to believe.”

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Posted by: AtlasMD

March 3, 2014

Direct Care Docs Left The Healthcare Blues Behind. Then John Stewart Sang Them.

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If you’re in the mood for a good laugh, check out this comedy round-up from The Atlantic. At the 1:30 mark, John Stewart decries Obamacare and its endless woes with a montage of politicians determined to save the monstrosity. You won’t believe how many times various proponents have uttered the phrase “Fix it. Don’t nix it.” in front of a camera. Is this our government’s way of fixing healthcare? Rhyming idealism? To be fair, we are visionaries, too. But as direct care practitioners, we spend less time trying to make our desires rhyme, and more time just making them a reality.