FAQs
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Wellness Direct Care’s services are generally not covered by insurance. We recommend you have insurance coverage for catastrophic events like surgeries, trauma, serious illness, and hospitalizations. Health insurance helps pay for labs, radiology, specialist visits, and hospital care. Many patients who join us opt for a high deductible health insurance plan which can provide significant overall cost savings to the patient. Also, many people never reach their deductible, and end up paying for most of their care out-of-pocket. For these people, a model like ours can end up saving them a significant amount of money.
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Because at Wellness Direct Care you receive significantly greater service and availability than what is generally provided by the primary care industry.
In addition to providing caring and personalized primary care, we also offer wellness coaching and medical services in such areas as weight loss, nutrition, mental health, substance use, and exercise, all of which is included in your monthly membership fee.
Direct Primary Care at Wellness Direct Care includes:
• Visits that take as long as they need to take to address the issue, or issues, you are experiencing.
• Same day or next day in-person or virtual appointments.
• Unlimited communication via text or email regarding your medical concerns. Video appointments are also available and can be scheduled the same day or next day. You no longer need to take time off work, or away from your family, to see your doctor.
• Limiting my practice to 300 patients as compared to the average primary care doctor that has a patient panel of 2,000+ patients.
• Avoiding the health insurance system altogether for the medical services I provide.
And, most importantly, a personal relationship with me, your doctor. My goal is for you to feel the same level of support and care that you would from having a doctor in your immediate family and the same availability as if I lived next door.
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Our membership fee is $155 per month. The monthly membership fee for minor dependents of existing members is $100.
If you have any questions about our fees or would like to discuss your particular situation with us, please do not hesitate to reach out.
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At Wellness Direct Care you get the same high quality, personalized service you would receive at a concierge or boutique medical practice, but at a lower cost.
Concierge and boutique practices typically bill insurance companies as well as charge recurring monthly (usually significant) fees to the patient. Wellness Direct Care has a monthly membership fee, but doesn’t bill you or your insurance, or collect co-pays, related to your visits. -
The Direct Primary Care model was created in response to patients growing increasingly frustrated with what modern-day primary care has become….15-minute visits; not being able to get in to see your doctor quickly; being limited to addressing one medical issue per visit; lack of prompt availability for getting questions answered virtually via text, email, and video; and aggravation with the health insurance bureaucracy, to name a few concerns.
All of these frustrations were also felt by me and are why I started Wellness Direct Care.
Direct Primary Care at Wellness Direct Care (WDC) includes:
Visits that take as long as they need to take to address the issue, or issues, you are experiencing.
Same day or next day in-office or virtual appointments.
The ability to communicate via text or email regarding your medical concern and receive a prompt reply. Video appointments are also available and can be scheduled the same day or next day. You no longer need to take time off work, or away from your family, to see your doctor.
Limiting my practice to 300 patients as compared to the average primary care doctor that has a patient panel of 2,000+ patients.
Avoiding the health insurance system altogether for the medical services I provide.
And, most importantly, a personal relationship with me, your doctor. My goal is for you to feel the same level of support and care you would from having a doctor in your immediate family, and the same availability as if I lived next door.
Direct Primary Care is based on a membership model where the patient pays a monthly fee to get access to me and the services I provide. Please see our Services page for more information.
Patients are strongly encouraged to maintain health insurance coverage to protect them in the event of needing hospitalization, emergency or specialist care, or other medical care not provided by WDC. Services provided by WDC will not be billed to your insurance company.
The most common question I get regarding Direct Primary Care is “why would I pay a monthly fee, separate from what I’m already paying to my health insurance company, for primary care?”
The simple answer: Wellness Direct Care provides significantly greater service and availability than is generally provided by the primary care and health insurance industries.
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You can make an appointment to meet with Dr. Olsen in the office, call or text her at 425.414.3939, or email at amy@wellnessdirectcare.com.
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Please see our services page for a complete list of included services.
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Currently the laws state that HSA dollars cannot be used for your membership fee, but can be used for all other medical care you receive, including labs, radiology, hospital care, specialty visits, etc. FSA's may be used depending on the employer's FSA criteria, so check directly with your employer or plan administrator.
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We currently do not provide vaccines in our clinic but partner with the resources already available for vaccine care in our community. We will provide guidance on which vaccines you need, when to get them and where they are available. Most vaccines are covered by insurance plans.
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We have found that most insurance plans do not cover membership-based fees. But we do encourage you to reach out to your health insurance provider to see if the monthly fees are reimbursable. The monthly fees may possibly be applied toward your deductible, but that will need to be confirmed with your health insurance provider.
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The cost of anything that happens outside of my clinic would be your, or your insurance carrier's, responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, hospital and emergency care, visits with other doctors and specialists, radiology, labs, and pathology (such as pap smear or biopsy results). Care related to work-related injuries are not included at this time. We also do not provide obstetrical or prenatal care but can help coordinate with local providers as needed. For a complete list of services that are not included, please request a copy of our most current patient agreement.
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If you need inpatient hospital care, you are free to go to any hospital of your choosing. Our office is not affiliated with any particular hospital network. Wherever you go, we will work closely with your inpatient care team to ensure a seamless transition back to our office. That way you get the best of both worlds: doctors caring for you who are physically in the hospital 24/7 as well as regular input from the doctor who knows you and your health history best.
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I will typically be able to communicate with my patients as long as I have cell coverage or an internet connection. If I am unable to answer phone calls, or you need to be seen in person while I am out of town, I partner with another local physician to provide you the care you need until I return. I will also let my patients know in advance when I plan to be away so that any refills or other issues can be addressed before I leave.
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If for any reason you want to cancel, please give us 30-day’s notice. You may be charged a re-enrollment fee should you choose to rejoin us at a future date.
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Evening and weekend appointments are available for urgent issues. Additionally, you will have access to Dr. Olsen after hours via text and phone (424.414.3939) and email at amy@wellnessdirectcare.com. You may also use the Spruce app to communicate electronically with Dr. Olsen.
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Elation Health’s Passport is an online portal to your medical chart. Here you can access several items including your medical history, lab results, vital signs, and immunization records. You can ask us questions and schedule appointments there as well. We also offer Spruce, which is is a secure communication app that allows you to send text messages, photos, and videos to Dr. Olsen. It also allows you to complete e-visits and participate in tele-health sessions.