The Rise of Concierge Healthcare

The New Definition of Concierge Healthcare

No Retainer Fees

Traditionally, a ‘concierge’ healthcare model involves paying a monthly or annual membership fee in order to access the benefits of a more personalized healthcare experience. These days, the quality of care provided by the concierge healthcare model is being paired with pricing models that make treatment more accessible to larger audiences. While a concierge healthcare provider may charge slightly higher hourly rates and their services may not be covered up-front by insurance providers – many are doing away with retainer fees and will often help patients claim reimbursement for the cost of their treatment.

Out-of-Network

As mentioned above, ‘concierge’ healthcare providers are usually not in-network with insurance providers. This is typically so they can offer completely unbiased healthcare services that are not swayed by the cost of the treatment itself. Offices usually have a service through which they’ll help patients fill-out forms associated with claiming reimburesemnt for service recieved but coverage is not guaranteed.

All-in-One Place Healthcare

Concierge healthcare providers are usually concerned with solving the patinets health concern by any means necessary. For this reason healthcare ‘centers’ and ‘partnerships’ seem to be on-the-rise wherein patients can access and try a range of different kinds of treatments under-one-roof. We’ve seen this implemented at physiotherapy clinics where a team of physiotherapists, massage therapists and chiropracters team-up to offer patients access to the full spectrum of their treatments as-needed while the patient is charged only for the upfront cost of the hourly appointment. This way, if the patient comes in with a sore shoulder, they can be treated with physiotherapy, massage therapy, shockwave therapy and chiropractic services as the medical experts deem necessary.

Another example is a psychiatrist offering a vast spectrum of psychiatric services including psychopharmacology, transcranial magnetic stimulation, theta burst stimulation and intravenous treatments so patients struggling with mental concerns have access to any kind of treatment they need without needing to waste time and resources assembling their own team of experts. 

Longer and More Frequent Appointents 

If we see any trend on the rise, it’s patients wanting longer, more personalized appointents and being willing to pay for a higher-quality of care from industry experts. On the flip side, we see healthcare providers increasingly aware of physician burnout and wanting to improve work-life balance for themselves and their staff. The result is a mutual interest in concierge-style healthcare which prioritizes the long-term well-being of both the patient and the physician.