direct primary care membership could help some. It's been great for my family we've had it for six months I've been watching for the gotcha bill but its not there just awesome service and cheap prescriptions . in this video DR Josh Umbehr talks about just how cheap medical care is if you remove the bureaucracy of dealing with the insurance companies and Medicare. the prices he states on prescriptions sound to good to be true . I can tell you they are not, my Dr bills the same way my BP medicine is under $5 for ninety days .

ttt

Can you get me cheap albuterol inhalers? The went from $20 a pop to $80 when they snuck in a way to patent the delivery system and outlaw the generic.

go Kansas

Cant imagine a day without health insurance. You get thrown to the wolves because there is no pricing control.

Hope it works for you. Sure is a gamble that you will probably not win someday. Hope you win.

somebody posted they had super cheap insurance for them and their wife....i think it was 50 ea per month and hardly any co pays....tell me more!!

We've got a local clinic here that does it. Basically you buy a "membership" similar to like a gym. If you're not sick you still pay the $50 a month....if you are sick you come in and see your doctor. No cap on visits per month although people using this system rarely seem to abuse it. At least 30 minute visits guaranteed with your physician, no rushing you in and out like cattle. Since you skip the insurance which is the reason most clinics/hospitals charge so much because they know the insurance company is going to fight on every penny, your healthcare is much cheaper. The one around here has partnered with local hospitals for reduced rates on labs/x-rays if needed. A lot of people using it still have insurance such as the crazy high deductibles in case you get hit by a bus that day, but at a much lower premium. The money saved on premiums can be held for the high max out of pocket on the high deductible plan. It seems to be working. The physician has had the clinic a few years, and due to demand is expanding.

tell us more guys..it sounds great!!

Here's a link to the one I was referring to. There was an article last year about the expansion so two years later, but I am not going to look it up.

https://journalstar.com/lifestyles/healt...6e56005811.html

I remember well the family Dr with a small office and waiting room and he knew us personally.

Glad to see some options to the current system being offered.

I know uf that boys family from way back! We both came from the same town, Alma Ks. I now live about thirty miles north of there. His dad took a case to the supreme court and won it, before he later became a lawyer. Am glad to see him shaking trees and making things happen! I have never met him, as we are too many generations apart, but my sister who still lives in Alma knows his family, and I forwarded the link to her. The Umbehr's are always thinking outside the box, bravo!

Interesting you mentioned Alma, there is a young couple there working as church planters that came from my church.

A few years back a local prominent family practice doctor broke out of his medical center/HMO system and opened a couple family practice "cash" clinics, partnering with some others. It is walk-in basis, and you pay $39 per visit, and are able to buy prescriptions there that are greatly reduced from the exhorbitant insurance prices listed on prescriptions filled elsewhere. Going to this clinic, even when I have excellent insurance, has proven to be far less expensive given co-pays, deductibles, etc. I have been very impressed with the quality and individualized care that my family and I have received there.

A couple years ago my son, who also has insurance was feeling lousy and he suspected strep, ear infection, etc. but would not have been able to afford urgent care fees. He went to the "cash clinic" and was examined, diagnosed, and was able to purchase a prescription, all for the grand total of around $45. He had about $70 in his wallet and gave it to them requesting that they pass the extra on to somebody who might need it.

These cash clinics can be a salvation in these times of insurance and health-care price gouging putting necessary health care out of reach of an ever-growing population.

Moosetrot

How do they interpret their lab work? Do they have their own equipmemt to analyze blood? I suppose they would refer you to a specialist if you needed one, like a cardiologist. You will be out of their network then I think. Suppose you had a cataract, a gall stone, need a stint, bad infection, hip replacememt, etc. Do they have hospital priviledges?

They hsve the facilities to do basic bloodwork, etc. When necessary and warranted, they refer to local hospitals, etc. within network, when things are too serious or beyond their capabilities.

A good example of this was me. A couple years ago, I knew I had something wrong with my hip. Had not yet even used my insurance at the time so was looking at a big deductible, etc. Decided to spend the $39 and went to the cash clinic to see if they could show or tell me anything to use as a basis for further treatment. The Doc did x-rays right there, and when he reviewed them he referred me to Ortho at Mayo, which is in my network. I was able to start a long chain of events at that point which resulted in a total hip replacement.

Moosetrot

We have a dental office here that keeps costs down and has great pricing. $45 exam, $79 cleaning and pretty much everything else cheaper. 10% off if you pay cash. A quote from their site.


If anyone nearby is interested it’s https://www.basicdentalcare.com/

they contract with the same labs the other Doctors use . they just don't mark up the price like other places do . the office we used to go to would bill for the doctor then every doctor in the group billed for consulting . but that was when I had insurance through work . Now I'm self employed I have a DPC membership and carry high deductible major medical insurance .I'm planning on starting a health savings plan which is kind of like a tax deductible IRA to cover the deductible and medical care that might not be covered

That's why you would need the high risk insurance on the side, and have enough saved to pay your max out of pocket. The basic lab work and x-rays is done at the same place as all your other local doctors at a fraction of the price. I ran a year of the high risk max out of pocket was $6,000. If you are only paying $200 for family (four people) per month compared to the $800 I pay per month for workplace insurance....it wouldn't take long to save up that max out of pocket $6,000. If you're a relatively healthy family I can't find too much against trying this out. Unfortunately the only place offering it currently around here is 35 minutes away.

The entire healthcare system is completely controlled by those insurance adjusters. People scoff at how much a hospital or doctor's office charges I've seen a few posts on here. The reason the costs are so high is the government allows a number of individuals to live off the working few in this country. They have to make their money back somehow for all that free care that these people are getting. If you want to get mad at the healthcare system look no further than the government controlling it and the insurance companies billing for it.

after you remove all the for profit middlemen like insurance companies ,pharmacies ,billing contractors ,and collection agencies from the picture it's amazing how reasonable the cost can be