You make an appointment with your doctor, ready for some relief.

You arrive on time, but sit in the waiting room for 30-minutes—the doctor is behind schedule. When you climb onto the table in your private room, you wait for another 20-minutes—she’ll be right with you.

Finally, the doctor walks in. You pull out your list of ailments, but she spends another 5-minutes typing on her tablet. After she runs through a list of generalized questions, she snaps the tablet closed. Your 15-minute session is complete.

The nurse ushers you out and says she’ll call if the insurance approves the treatment—it could take 2-3 weeks. While you’re eventually approved, you repeat this process every few months, just to get a small dose of a generic-brand solution for your not-so-generic ailments.

Sound familiar?

Quick, insurance-driven driven health care is has become the norm.

But physicians are now changing the patient experience with a direct pay care model. Direct pay primary care isn’t a new service. Before the rise of employer-based insurance in the 1940’s, people paid cash to their family doctor for health care.

The concept of my doctor knows me, has time for me and has a relationship with me is on the rise. And one-size-fits-all health care is on a descent.

Yearly insurance upheavals, huge deductibles and copays, prior approval for medications and surgery and “big business” care in doctors’ offices are driving patients to seek something different.

Direct pay care offers flat, reasonable rates to all patients. It puts important, health care decisions back into the hands of the doctor and the patient.

According to The Physicians’ Foundation 2014 survey, 7% of physicians now practice some form of direct pay medicine, while 13% are planning to transition to this type of practice.

You can learn more about direct pay specialty care here and here. But, we’ve created a quick overview of the key benefits of choosing a direct pay specialty physician below.

You get more, one-on-one time with your doctor

Eighty-one percent of physicians say they are over-extended or at full capacity. And 20% of their day is spent on non-clinical work, like completing insurance claim forms and negotiating payment rates.

With a direct pay model, physicians can spend less time at the desk and more time getting to know you.

Direct pay specialists also see fewer patients, so they can spend more time with each one, while still providing all the resources needed to run a high-quality clinic. Patients spend less time in the reception area. And the physicians are more available for appointments convenient to you.

You get care that’s customized to you

With direct pay, your physician can select the treatment that’s best for you, not the one that’s covered by your insurance.

For example, at Exceed Hormone Specialists, our approach to hormone therapy, uses the highest quality, bioidentical hormone pellets. Your dose is unique to you, based on your treatment goals, medical history, weight, height, lab results and level of activity.

You get a lifelong solution

Because your hormone therapy plan is customized, you get access to a life-long solution without experiencing the negative side effects that come with synthetic hormones. Bioidentical hormones are safe and effective for years.

On the other hand, insurance companies who work with pharmacy benefit managers, choose medications for you based on cost, not quality.

To get the best treatment, or bioidentical hormones, you go through an obstacle course of higher prices, prior approvals and restricted quantity.

With direct pay specialty care, you develop a close, personal relationship with your physician. We maintain that relationship far into the future and give you personal care every day. In addition, you have easy access to your physician for on-going advice.

Want to learn more about our pricing structure or see if you’re a good fit for our personalized care? Give us a call to schedule your visit.