If you run a small business, you know that health insurance premiums — even for healthy employees — grow more cost-prohibitive year after year. In fact, over the past decade, premiums have increased 40%.
Most employees appreciate receiving health insurance through their employer, and many small-business owners want to provide it. But with rising costs, either the employee or the business bears the brunt of increased premiums — a lose-lose situation.
We’ve seen many small-business owners think outside the box with this two-pronged plan:
- Adopt high-deductible catastrophic health insurance coverage for your employees — typically dramatically less costly for the business.
- Engage your employees with an excellent direct primary care (DPC) physician or concierge doctor who proactively anticipates their health needs and keeps them physically and mentally fit.
The result can be two-fold for your business:
- Improved productivity. Healthy, strong, well-cared-for workers experience fewer sick days and are more productive and efficient on the job. If they fall ill, they immediately reach their DPC doctor and receive prompt treatment, preventing lost time at the office and a delayed recovery.
- Real savings in healthcare dollars. Proactive and preventive efforts may even save a member of your team a trip to the emergency room, which is worth their whole year of concierge membership.
The Clear Value of Direct Primary Care
You may have heard that primary care doctors are healthcare “gatekeepers.” They simply listen to your symptoms, then refer you to a GI doctor, cardiologist, neurologist, or other specialist.
In traditional healthcare models, this is often the case. Traditional primary care doctors are obliged to see an average of 20 patients each day, leaving them little or no time to provide intensive, personalized care for their employees.
With direct primary care, it’s quite the opposite.
At Priority Physicians, our office fills about 95% of a patient’s care needs, year in and year out. Our doctors manage a smaller patient panel than traditional doctors, so we have the time, expertise, and capabilities to conduct patient checkups, exams, and diagnoses, calling in sub-specialists only if the results warrant it.
The need for fewer healthcare referrals spells greater efficiency and cost control for your business — and more convenient and attentive care for your team.
This level of personalized care sets your small business apart from others. It reinforces your care for your team members. It also benefits employee retention: Happy employees enjoy their work and appreciate their workplace. Patients typically develop a trusting relationship with their DPC physician, so they’re reluctant to move on to a different work environment and lose that valued connection.
We Support the Future of Healthcare
Priority Physicians recognizes that the traditional healthcare model is not only broken, but it seems to be getting worse.
We’re committed to attracting more doctors to the direct primary care model — doctors who will help solve the current healthcare crisis by lowering costs and restoring personalized patient care.
DPC doctors have more time to spend with patients, to guide them through diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management plans, and deliver thoughtful diagnoses and treatment strategies.
Team members who feel valued enjoy coming to work, are more productive, and tend to have a longer tenure with the business. Just as your small business prides itself on excellent customer service, we encourage you to seek this higher level of healthcare for your employees.
