"My Doc" Introduces Apopka to Simple Health Care

How many purchases do you make without actually knowing the cost? For most people the only purchase they ever make without first knowing the cost is medical care. Patients routinely seek treatment and learn the cost only when the bill arrives in the mail.

The days of not knowing the cost of medical services is coming to an end, at least for patients of Apopka's newest medical practice, My Doc.

My Doc recently opened in the Apopka Land Shopping Center at 721 South Orange Blossom Trail, Apopka, FL 32703.

Monthly memberships cost $10 per person. Members get several benefits:

• Unlimited email access to your physician for non-emergency issues
• On-site physician consultations cost $50
• Preferred pricing for laboratory testing and diagnostic imaging

The prices for all services are posted on the wall in the My Doc waiting room.

The Docs behind My Doc are Doctors Farela and Farooq.

What is "Direct Primary Care?"

According to KevinMD.com, Direct Primary Care is any primary care practice model that is directly reimbursed by the patient consumer for both access and primary medical care, and which does not accept or bill third party payers (such as insurance companies).

Direct primary care started in the mid 2000s, and was initially created as an insurance-free model to serve uninsured patients. In Direct Primary Care, patients are charged a monthly fee and pay pre-determined prices for medical services received. There is typically no third-party payer involvement. Patients pay the physician directly (hence, direct primary care).

Because the insurance “middle man” is eliminated all the overhead associated with claims, coding, claim refiling, write-offs, billing staff, etc... disappears.

Direct Primary Care is not "Concierge Medicine."

Concierge medicine started in the mid 1990s for wealthy individuals who were willing to “bypass” the fee-for-service system by paying a subscription to access select primary care physicians. This access consists of same-day appointments, round-the-clock cell phone coverage, email and telemedicine service, and sometimes, house calls. Although some high-end practices charge as much as $30,000 a month, most charge an average monthly fee of $200.

Many concierge doctors also bill insurance or Medicare for actual medical visits, as the monthly “access fee” is only for “non-covered” services. This results in two subscriptions paid by patients — the concierge medicine fee, and the insurance premium.