HDC + Health Insurance
Holton Direct Care is an independent, affordable primary care practice that doesn't bill insurance. This lets us give more personalized care and often cut patients' overall healthcare costs by focusing on prevention, reducing specialist and ER visits, and lowering lab, imaging, and medication expenses.
However, we know “insurance” of some type is still needed for unexpected, costly medical events. Many HDC members use a high-deductible or catastrophic plan with a Health Savings Account. That gives great routine care while protecting against major expenses. Others use indemnity plans or health-sharing arrangements; paired with DPC, these can be effective and affordable.
Still have questions about insurance? We’ve answered most of them below!
Insurance FAQs
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No. We not contract with any private or public (Medicare or Medicaid) health insurance plans and cannot bill them on your behalf. However, we encourage everyone to have some form of health insurance in case of unexpected, expensive health events, such as surgery or hospitalization.
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Nope! DPC is an excellent way to access high-quality primary healthcare and other services. Still, we strongly recommend that everyone carry some form of health insurance, which is necessary for unexpected and expensive events.
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Yes! The vast majority of our services are considered eligible medical expenses. Most patients use a debit card, which is automatically approved, but can provide receipts for reimbursement where needed.
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In most cases, yes. Your insurance plans will continue to operate “as usual” at other doctor's office, hospitals and pharmacies. PPO-style plans do not require a designated “gatekeeper” doctor for referrals, medications, tests, etc. We can order or refer just as another doctor would do. HMO-style plans (including Kansas Medicaid plans) do require an in-network designated primary doctor for access to other services, so they do not pair as well with DPC.
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We can provide Medicare beneficiaries stellar primary care services. However, our charges cannot be billed to Medicare by us or the patient and the beneficiary must sign a Private Contract prior to joining acknowledging this fact. As Medicare is an open network, patients may continue to use their Medicare benefit elsewhere with accepting providers as usual.
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Our services, by themself, do not qualify as health insurance or covered under current law. However, this type of practice is loosely termed “Direct Primary Care.” It is mentioned briefly in the Affordable Care Act as "participating in insurance exchanges with a wrap-around insurance plan”. The details of such are still very unclear, but we are not waiting around for Washington or any other capitols to provide our community with high-quality, affordable primary care.
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We do not contract with any Medicaid/KanCare plans and cannot bill them for our services. Medicaid/KanCare recipients are welcome to join us but will likely also be assigned a "network Primary Care Physician (PCP)" that may be required to access other health plan benefits and services.
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MEMBERSHIP FEES: Generally, insurance companies do NOT recognize any membership fees as a reimbursable expense.
OTHER FEES: For à la carte services or non-covered service fees (meds, labs, x-rays, etc.), we can provide a receipt of payment so you can process with your insurance plan if you wish.
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Indemnity “health” insurance is a type of insurance that allows you to see any doctor or hospital without needing a referral. The policyholder is reimbursed with a fixed cash benefit for each event or service. It's considered a “supplemental” plan, not a replacement for a major medical plan. These plans will include a yearly maximum benefit per person or family.
One option that recognizes the value of DPC membership is Altas.direct. This plan was designed exclusively for patients who participate in a DPC practice—lowering premiums compared to other plans.
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Health share plans have traditionally been offered by religious-based organizations that help members share their health expenses. This is technically not “insurance” and not regulated as such. Here is an in-depth article about how Health Share plans work, including their pros and cons. Some options for health share plans are:
Samaritan
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We are not financial or health insurance advisors and recommend you speak with a professional in that industry if you have questions. However, our members often find that high-deductible (or catastrophic) insurance plans, health share plans, or indemnity policies are very pleased with their arrangements when combined with our services. We can provide day-to-day services, and a high-deductible plan can help limit the enormous expenses associated with a significant event.
Here are a few DPC-friendly health insurance advisors who can assist you:
Sunflower Benefits Group
Health Trust Financial
HSA For America
Still confused by insurance + DPC?
If you're unsure about how DPC can work with insurance, contact us to discuss.