Evolve Medical Clinics, Maryland’s first Direct Primary Care, has been awarded the Capital Readers Choice Finalist for both Primary Care and Urgent Care for 3 years in a row: 2015, 2016 and now 2017.
Evolve Medical Clinics, Maryland’s first Direct Primary Care, has been awarded the Capital Readers Choice Finalist for both Primary Care and Urgent Care for the 3rd year in a row: 2015, 2016 and now 2017. Evolve Medical has previously been awarded the Baltimore Business Journal’s 2015 Small Business Health Care Innovator, Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce’s Entrepreneur of the Year for 2015 and Chesapeake Family’s Favorite Docs.
The Story Behind Founding the Maryland’s Best Primary Care and Urgent Care
In 2013, Dr. Michael Freedman of Evolve Medical Clinics in Annapolis, MD, describes feeling badly for patients who were tired of not being able to seen or talk to their doctor when they need them as well. He saw that patients were stuff for hours in crowded and sometimes dirty waiting rooms, all for only a rushed 6 minute visit. And he saw that the doctors themselves were burnt out, stressed and were focused on their computers–and not the patient.
He knew there had to be a better way.
The Solution? Evolve Medical Clinics: A Direct Primary Care
Although at the time, the concept of Direct Primary Care (DPC) had hardly even been named, there was a small select group of doctors who were discovering a better way to take care of their patients. By early January 2013, Dr. Freedman was working on Evolve Medical. It took until July 2014 for the doors of Evolve to be opened to the public, in large part due to the complicated laws surrounding healthcare.
Since opening, Evolve has been joined by a growing number of DPC practices. And the patients? Patients say they are thrilled. The doctors feel they are providing much better care. Researchers are proving the DPC provides less expensive care, better personalized primary care and improves outcomes. And health experts nationwide are touting DPC as the first major step in repairing the broken American healthcare system.
Patients who opt to get Direct Primary Care get more personalized care, with attentive providers who are not rushed and who can devote the time necessary to really listen and properly diagnosis and treat them.
Direct Primary Care: Affordable to Everyone
People frequently confuse DPC with concierge medicine. Although DPC is considered similar to concierge medicine, there are several differences. Most importantly to the patient, the cost isn’t $170 per month but substantially lower. At Evolve Medical, the cost for anyone under age 65 (regardless of any pre-existing conditions) is only $49 per month. That is only $1.63 per day, which is a lot less than the average 16oz cup of black coffee at Starbucks. It’s easy to see that DPC is accessible to everyone.
And at Evolve, for $49 per month, Dr. Freedman’s patients get nearly all of their primary care and urgent care needs handled (statically 95% of the healthcare we use is either primary care or urgent care). Then, if they ever need it, their insurance pays for the rare surgery, hospitalization or expensive procedure they may need.
Dr. Freedman notes, “My patients range from CEOs and lawyers to Medicaid patients who simply value the better access, better care and undivided personalized attention.”
Direct Primary Care: Save Money & Lower Your Risk of Death
In addition to potentially saving hundreds of dollars, Direct Primary Care has been proven to improve people’s health outcomes.
In one study published by the British Medical Journal, Qliance, a DPC group in Seattle, showed the following results:
- 35% fewer hospitalizations
- 65% fewer ER visits
- 66% fewer specialists visits
- 82% fewer surgeries
With upwards of 200,000 deaths per year attributed to hospital mistakes, eliminating 35% of hospital stays and 82% of surgeries alone could save tens of thousands of lives per year.
“I can tell you that we, as DPC providers, are really dedicated to eliminating unnecessary care and being there for people so they don’t have to go to the ER — or worse end up hospitalized,” adds Deb Needle, CRNP, of Evolve Medical.
The doctors at Evolve Medical not only have more time for visits and are able to focus solely on their patient–and not on the insurance company–but they also help their patients find the least expensive medication for their plan, at the least expensive pharmacy. Evolve Medical uses software to locate discounts and text their patients a coupon to use that can mean savings of up to 80% on each prescription!
Better Access Equals Better Primary Care
When Jacob and Hilary, a husband and wife with 2 kids, decided to join Evolve Medical, there were two reasons they decided to switch: the cost-effectiveness of not having to spend so much on primary care and urgent care, and the fact that it could easily fit his family’s busy lifestyle.
“For less than $100 per month, me, my wife and our 2 kids (ages 6 and 10 years old) are covered. We get our checkups when we need them–without the hassle and the wait. We get seen same day and we can get our meds, lab tests and even radiology testing at near wholesale prices.”
Hilary added, “We feel like we have near-constant access to our doctor. A quick text, email or phone call–or even a FaceTime type visit–is often enough for Dr. Freedman to diagnose our problem.”
Dr. Freedman explains that “Since I have this direct relationship with Hilary and her family, I treat her like I would any family member or friend that texts me a picture asking what to do about the weight they just dropped on their toe.”
Hilary felt the ability to NOT go to the doctors office was worth the monthly rate. “I can let the office know I have a urinary infection, which I get sometimes, and instead of waiting a day or hours, Evolve just sends the prescription over. They know me and my family personally.”