SEATTLE -
As lawmakers in Washington D.C. continue to struggle over a new health care plan, a Seattle clinic says it has a much different solution to the problem. The clinic is called Qliance, and it doesn't accept payments from insurance companies. Qliance bills its customers directly, and doctors and patients say it saves thousands of dollars.
Qliance is a lot like a health club. You pay a fee of $99 to join, then a flat rate, based on age, of $49 to $79 every month for primary care service. The clinic's doctors say their non-insurance health care model can be a success locally and at the national level.
Sunni Campbell is a student and part-time restaurant worker who doesn't get health insurance on the job. When she looked at private insurance plans, the cost of $400 bucks or more per month left her breathless. "That's hard for anyone," says the 26 year-old Campbell.
So, she switched to Qliance, paid $99 dollars to join, and now pays out about $50 per month. She sees a doctor for half hour appointments or hour-long physicals, as needed, seven days a week. Campbell says, "I can come on the weekends, call on the phone... there's just a lot of versatility here, and I like it."
Dr. Garrison Bliss co-founded the company with a simple premise. "If the patient is paying, and the doctor works for the patient, that changes everything." Dr. Bliss says the average doctor in the insurance system spends nearly $65,000 a year just working to get paid. Patients are apparently interested in saving money with Qliance, too. In fact, so many patients have signed up, Qliance has just opened another clinic in Kent. Qliance nurse practitioner Lynne Duran says, "That says to me this model is successful."
It's successful, but not perfect. Patients have to pay extra, in some cases, up to 400 bucks a month outside of Qliance for catastrophic medical care coverage for major health problems. Yet, 90% of our doctor's visits are primary care appointments, which Qliance is able to take care of.
So as Congress works on its new plan to give everyone health insurance, Qliance says lawmakers should consider trying to get patients actual health care instead. Dr. Bliss says, "There are simple solutions to this problem, but we as a nation have to have the guts to try it."
For more information on Qliance, you can go to the company's website by following this link.
Qliance is a lot like a health club. You pay a fee of $99 to join, then a flat rate, based on age, of $49 to $79 every month for primary care service. The clinic's doctors say their non-insurance health care model can be a success locally and at the national level.
Sunni Campbell is a student and part-time restaurant worker who doesn't get health insurance on the job. When she looked at private insurance plans, the cost of $400 bucks or more per month left her breathless. "That's hard for anyone," says the 26 year-old Campbell.
So, she switched to Qliance, paid $99 dollars to join, and now pays out about $50 per month. She sees a doctor for half hour appointments or hour-long physicals, as needed, seven days a week. Campbell says, "I can come on the weekends, call on the phone... there's just a lot of versatility here, and I like it."
Dr. Garrison Bliss co-founded the company with a simple premise. "If the patient is paying, and the doctor works for the patient, that changes everything." Dr. Bliss says the average doctor in the insurance system spends nearly $65,000 a year just working to get paid. Patients are apparently interested in saving money with Qliance, too. In fact, so many patients have signed up, Qliance has just opened another clinic in Kent. Qliance nurse practitioner Lynne Duran says, "That says to me this model is successful."
It's successful, but not perfect. Patients have to pay extra, in some cases, up to 400 bucks a month outside of Qliance for catastrophic medical care coverage for major health problems. Yet, 90% of our doctor's visits are primary care appointments, which Qliance is able to take care of.
So as Congress works on its new plan to give everyone health insurance, Qliance says lawmakers should consider trying to get patients actual health care instead. Dr. Bliss says, "There are simple solutions to this problem, but we as a nation have to have the guts to try it."
For more information on Qliance, you can go to the company's website by following this link.
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