Keeping You Healthy, Out Of The Emergency Room, & Out Of The Hospital
Access Family Medicine (AccessFamilyMedicine.com) is a membership-based, insurance-free Direct Primary Care clinic, and recently began offering services to all individuals in the Lincoln area, 0-99+, male or female, for a low monthly rate.
Tell us a little about Access Family Medicine.
When a client joins our practice, they will receive excellent care when they need it; no more waiting in doctors’ offices for long periods of time only to be rushed through your appointment. We do not bill insurance, and for this we are able to offer very affordable care. This style of practice is designed to pair nicely with a high deductible insurance plan; pay for what you can afford and insure what you can’t.
How long have you been in Lincoln?
We opened our doors on July 18, 2016.
Dr. Todd Johnson
Who are the owners/important executives?
Dr. Todd and Tiffany Johnson.
What do you think makes you different from other companies similar to yours?
We are the very first Direct Primary Care Clinic in Lincoln. Although Direct Primary Care often gets referred to as “concierge” medicine, it is uniquely different. A client’s monthly membership pays for all their office visits; no extra co-pays at the door, unlike a true concierge practice. Also, while most concierge practices bill insurance, a direct primary care clinic will not submit any insurance claims.
What do you like about doing business in Lincoln?
The people! Lincoln is a very remarkable community and provides tremendous opportunity for the people who live and work here. We enjoy the personal attention that hasn’t been forgotten when you visit local businesses.
What kind of community organizations/groups are you involved with?
We are proud to be a member of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce. Outside of clinic time, most of our current efforts are focused on educating small businesses as to how they can use this model to provide Primary Care Services to their employees. We realized that it was becoming increasingly difficult for businesses to provide health insurance, and have addressed that by providing a service that helps meet the basic needs of those in our community.
Do you have a business philosophy or mission statement?
Our goal is to work with our clients to keep them healthy, out of the emergency room and out of the hospital.
What changes have you seen in the industry and your company in the past few years?
Health care and health insurance have become incredibly expensive and unaffordable for many. The quality of care has diminished to a less than desirable state as well. At Access Family Medicine, we believe that it is time to put the relationship back into health care by offering the time and attention our clients need. We like having the ability to answer all of their questions when they have them.
What is one of the biggest challenges that your company has faced?
Educating the community on how the model is intended to work is definitely our biggest obstacle. Most individuals instantly think that this model is for people without insurance. However, this is not the case. Direct Primary Care is intended to be paired with a catastrophic plan, keeping the relatively inexpensive ticket items off of insurance claims. In fact, many people with insurance come to us seeking the service/relationship aspect of the model, and are finding that they too are saving money.
What has been your most important achievement as a business?
Initially, we reached out to a pharmacy, lab service and imaging center to ask them to join forces with us and extend the savings in their area of expertise. We were thrilled when all of them agreed and jumped on board. Now, many other service lines in health care are calling and wanting to be a part of our mission and philosophy, which is really exciting. We truly believe that direct primary care is a means to take control over the high cost of health care, and we cannot do it alone.
What do you see happening with the business in the next five years?
It is our hope that the community will grow to love Direct Primary Care as much as we do. There is no one we cannot serve–young/old, male/female, regardless of financial conditions. We take great pride in the fact that we can tell our clients EXACTLY what the cost will be for them to visit their doctor. Our transparency with pricing on wholesale medications and procedures as well as pricing for imaging and lab services makes this model very attractive.
We also hope more providers will get on board; the phrase “Rising tides raise all ships” is how we like to think of it. The more physicians we have practicing health care in this fashion, the more we will be able to manage the cost of health care. This model of care is truly a win-win situation for everyone involved. The patient wins, because they receive excellent quality of care, when they need it, at an affordable cost. The physician wins, because he isn’t expected to see 30-35 patients in an 8-hour day. Insurance companies win as it helps regulate total claims submitted and total cost of care.
Access Family Medicine is located at 2800 N. 83rd Street, Suite E. As this is a new and very different concept, all are welcome to call the office at (402) 858-1510 and ask questions! You can also find more information online at AccessFamilyMedicine.com.
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