LEAWOOD, Kan. — A primary care clinic in Johnson County is doing healthcare differently.
All patients are on a monthly membership plan, so it completely takes insurance companies out of the equation.
Amanda Morris is a nurse practitioner at Gillett Health. She worked in the traditional healthcare system for 15 years before switching over about two years ago.
“As I worked longer and longer in that system, it was going away from actually taking care of people, and it was more of a business traction or about money at the end of the day,” Morris said.
That is when she found out about direct primary care, a type of healthcare model that completely takes the middle man out of the system. It is a monthly membership at a flat rate with unlimited visits and no co-pays.
“I just want people to know that there’s a different way. So if it’s not working for you, you are not stuck in it. You’re not stuck in it as a patient and you’re not stuck in it as a provider,” Morris said. “For most people, direct primary care membership is cheaper than their cellphone.”
Morris recommends still keeping a form of insurance for emergencies and high cost surgeries, but a plan like this is perfect for families with high deductible plans.
“Almost without a major surgery or a major life event, you’re never gonna hit that high deductible anyways," Elizabeth Goebel said. "So you’re gonna be paying a lot of money out of pocket for everything that you do, and it was the same for us."
Goebel and her three kids switched over to Gillett Health and are now saving about $150 per month. But for them, it is about so much more than just money — she wanted collaboration and trust when it comes to her family’s health.
“There should be more to healthcare than just, ‘Here’s ten minutes, tell me your biggest issues.’ Right? Here you can come you have 30 minutes to an hour,” Goebel said. “There is a portal, there is email, there is a line you can text, you can call here, you have a lot of options for reaching someone, so that’s nice.”
Morris says that access is one of the biggest reasons why people are starting to switch. A primary care provider usually has about 5,000 patients on average.
At Gillett Health, that number is about 500.
This means same-to-next-day visits and longer one on ones.
“Not every family is going to save a bunch of money upfront. On the front end, that’s not gonna be always a possibility," Goebel said. "But it’s always going to save you peace of mind knowing that you have someone here for you and your family who actually knows you and can provide personalized care."
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