Direct Primary Care in plain language

Patients ask us the same question in different words: "What actually changes?" Here is the plain answer, without the jargon.

You pay the practice directly, once a month

Direct Primary Care, or DPC, is a membership model for primary care. Instead of billing an insurance company for each visit, the practice charges one flat monthly fee. At Mountain Peaks that is $99 a month for most adults, $110 for adults 65 and older, $25 for children through age 17 under a parent's membership, and $299 for a household of two parents and up to four dependent children. There is no enrollment fee, and membership is month to month.

Because there is no claim to file, there is no copay at the desk and no bill after a routine visit. Visits, follow-ups and the questions in between are already paid for.

What the fee covers

Routine primary-care visits, as many as your care requires. Preventive and wellness care, including physicals and well-child checks. Acute care when you are sick and ongoing care for chronic conditions. Minor office procedures such as skin lesion removal, biopsies and cryotherapy. Direct contact with Dr. Durrans through the member app, with same- or next-day visits when clinically appropriate.

• Labs, vaccines and dispensed medications are priced for members and quoted before you agree
• Imaging, specialists and hospital care are provided elsewhere and billed by those providers
• Membership is not health insurance; keep coverage for care outside the practice

Why a practice would change to this

Insurance-based primary care pays by the visit, so a practice stays afloat by seeing more patients in less time. Membership pays for the relationship instead. With fewer patients per physician and no claims to chase, a visit can run as long as it needs to, a question can be answered by message rather than an appointment, and the person answering already knows your history.

What it is not

It is not concierge medicine; there is no retainer on top of insurance billing. It is not insurance; it does not cover the hospital, the emergency room or a specialist's bill. And it is not a package with tiers. There is one membership, priced by age, and children join under a parent.

How to decide

Add up what you spend on primary care today, including copays, and think about how often you have put off a visit because getting one was a hassle. If you have Medicare, Medicaid or an employer plan, membership works the same way; the practice simply does not bill that coverage for the care included in membership. If you want to talk it through, call the office at 801.724.9840, and read the frequently asked questions for the details.