How to get low cost labs for your direct primary care practice
I am a physician in suburban Detroit that is interested in the DPC and house call-based primary care model. I recently watched your segment on the Channel 4 news and was particularly interested in:
How do you run such low-cost labs (I looked into LabCorp & Quest and they were really expensive unless you do high-volume with them)
Similarly, how do you get low-cost meds and imaging?
What are the panel sizes that make sense for this model (I would guess that you would need a smaller panel size to support a higher-touch practice)
How do you market/attract pts to this model, particularly since you are not getting any referrals from insurance companies?
I just bought your book on Amazon, do you have any other resources you recommend?
Here’s my response:
all of these questions are answered in the book :)
1.) We asked Quest over and over and over and over and over and over and over again for better prices until they caved
2.) We get low cost meds via ANDAmeds, we get low cost imaging via Regional Medical Imaging
3.) We aim for 500 patients per doctor
4.) We attract via social media and SEO
5.) read the Startup DPC book! and check out our courses on www.StartupDPC.com - the Sales Funnel Course will be especially helpful for you!
- Paul
Seriously, you have to call Quest over and over and over and over and over again until you get through to the right person. BUT you don’t have to have amazing prices to start. You can get decent prices or start without offering labs, and then just layer on better and better services and better prices as time goes on. Your Direct Primary Care practice doesn’t have to be perfect from day 1, you just have to continually strive to improve it with each day, week, month, and year, and THEN you’ll have an amazing practice and business.