FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Direct care is a practice/payment model where patients pay their physician directly in the form of periodic payments for a defined set of services. Typically this includes a flat monthly fee in exchange for access to a broad range of medical services. In this model, the physician usually provides care for 400-600 people, allowing ample time for individual appointments and increased access to the physician.

No. Mountain States Diabetes does not accept insurance. Rather than spending time submitting insurance claims, we focus on what matters most…YOUR health!

Yes. Your membership fees will cover most of your medical needs. However, we do not perform surgery, set bones or provide care in the hospital. Because these services can be unpredictable and very expensive, we recommend you maintain a health insurance that covers surgery and hospitalization just in case.

Definitely! You have the option to choose face-to-face or video visits with every appointment!

Definitely! One of the advantages of direct care is increased availability of your doctor.
We do offer cash-pay same day services. If your health is important once, then this might be a great option for you. Alternatively, urgent walk-in services are included in the monthly plans.
We work for YOU, not your insurance company or “big system” healthcare. Our membership system to help keep costs down and provide easy access for you to connect to your physician when you need it. Our pricing is transparent and so you will never receive a surprise bill. Moreover, Dr. Miller has lived with type 1 diabetes herself for 32 years. She understands the challenges of living with diabetes & has developed a number of strategies to simplify management. She takes pride in her thriftiness (a self-described “cheap skate”) & and will do everything she can to ensure that you have access to top-of-the-line healthcare at a reasonable price.
One of the advantages of our clinic is that we work to keep you out of the hospital! Dr. Miller does not provide hospital services. However, should you require hospitalization, she will communicate directly with your care team & advocate for you throughout your stay. This can help to ensure you continue to receive top-notch care. We do recommend that you maintain insurance that covers hospitalization and surgery (see above).
With direct care, your payment goes directly to the physician. Additionally, bloodwork, imaging and medications are avialable at affordable/wholesale pricing. Your doctor limits the number of patients she sees to 500-600 patients to ensure she is availalable and can provide you with the time and attention you need when you need it!

In a traditional clinic, your doctor is reimbursed for each task performed in a visit. Unfortunately, this rewards expensive/inappropriate testing, referrals to other doctors and additional interventions. Your doctor is incentivized to do more to you in a shorter amount of time, volume over the value/need for the service. Most doctors working in a traditional clinic have at least 2500+ and up to 6000 different patients. meaning less time with each patient per year.

You can find information about our pricing here. For more details including price comparisons, please see our diabetes and primary care services pages.

Do you have more questions?

More About Direct Care

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