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This Doctor Won鈥檛 Take Health Insurance - and Charges Just $35 a Visit - YouTube
Channel: AJ+
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I realized the system was broken,
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so much to the point that
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I was part of the problem
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of contributing to that broken system.
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- Dr. Timothy Wong doesn't take
any insurance in his practice -
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and charges most of his patients
$35 for a consultation.
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We would always have to fight
the insurance companies
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getting something a patient required.
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We're talking about
having to do extra work
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just to get a diabetic
the insulin they need;
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having to get a patient a
life-sustaining medication,
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and having to give her samples,
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just so that she doesn't
end up in the hospital again.
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Health care is the only industry, I think,
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that we really turn customers away.
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We could do better as providers.
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We can buck the system and change it.
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- After working
at a hospital for four years,
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Dr. Wong decided to quit his job
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and open his own primary care
clinic in Pittsburgh.
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He's one of a growing number
of doctors who are looking
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for ways to cut the
insurance companies out.
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Not taking insurance is a defiance
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because it's against the traditional
way we do things.
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- Health insurance is a
trillion-dollar industry in the U.S.
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And profits are on the rise,
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but medical costs keep going up.
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And by taking this insurance,
we also get paid by the insurance.
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So, they become our masters
in a lot of ways.
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- Dr. Wong is able to treat the vast majority
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of routine ailments
as a primary care doctor,
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but can't provide emergency care
or specialist expertise.
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That means all of Dr. Wong鈥檚 patients
pay a flat fee of $35
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for primary care and
$10 for each additional ailment.
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There are no hidden fees, copays
or bills that show up in the mail later.
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$35 might be more than you paid
for your last doctors visit,
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but consider all the other potential fees
associated with insurance.
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Copays are the set amount you pay
for doctors visits and prescriptions,
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plus premiums every month
to insurance companies.
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Deductibles are how much you pay
out-of-pocket each year
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before your coverage kicks in.
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Coinsurances are a percentage you pay
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even after your deductible has been met.
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Health care pricing is just confusing.
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It鈥檚 like not knowing how much
a hamburger costs
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until after you鈥檝e already eaten it.
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And Dr. Wong believes you don't need
insurance to cover basic care, like
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stitches, flu shots or a sprained ankle.
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Part of our philosophy is
to keep things simple,
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but also to keep our costs low,
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so that we can pass that off to patients.
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- Dr. Wong is the only employee.
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There鈥檚 no receptionist, nurse or assistant.
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Patients sign in on an iPad
and wait until he calls them in.
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I was at work,
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put my finger in the mixer,
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and it's smashed.
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- Brent drove over an hour
to get to the iHealth Clinic.
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I've dealt with this kind of injury before.
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I've paid thousands of dollars,
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even with my insurance.
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Last time was actually
$750 out-of-pocket
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for two stitches.
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- The most Dr. Wong says
he's charged a patient?
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$55.
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That doesn鈥檛 include things
like testing or medication.
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But he works with patients
to find affordable options.
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I think a true primary care provider
is a patient's advocate.
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- Dr. Wong says he used to
do a lot of extra work
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just for insurance companies.
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It was almost to the point where
I would tell the patients,
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you know what? I'll do this after you leave.
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There's really nothing
I'm doing face-to-face with you
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that's providing you a benefit.
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I'm just, you know,
working on the computer
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or filling out forms that
the insurance wanted.
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- Both the endless paperwork and
emotional stress Dr. Wong experienced
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while working with insurance companies
led him to feel burnt out.
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More than half of U.S. doctors
have reported symptoms of burnout.
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Physician burnout, or burnout
in the health care industry,
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is called by other people moral injury.
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And moral injury occurs
when we are asked every day,
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and constantly, to do something
that is against our morals.
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- While Dr. Wong doesn鈥檛 want
to work with insurance companies,
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he acknowledges that his clinic is not
a replacement for insurance coverage.
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Catastrophic care is very important.
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You don't want to go into personal debt,
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you know, for a lifetime
because of an accident
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when an insurance
could have covered that.
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- The American Medical Association
hasn鈥檛 taken a stance
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on doctors cutting out
insurance companies,
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but says it supports their right to choose.
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But I think a lot of providers
don't realize that this model exists,
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and it could fit them very well.
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They might not get paid as much,
but their job satisfaction gets better.
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- There鈥檚 not enough data yet on
the long-term impact of models like this.
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But Dr. Wong believes
he鈥檚 already making a difference.
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We can decrease the cost of care.
We can increase efficiency.
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We can increase access of primary care
and urgent care services
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to those who need it.
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And I think you can
improve people's lives that way.
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- At his last job,
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Dr. Wong says he was lucky
to get a handshake from a patient.
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I've never had such gratitude from patients.
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Just this week, I saw someone drive by
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and give me the thumbs-up
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as I was closing the door
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because I think she kind of knew about
what we were trying to do here.
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If I have a 1% chance
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of changing the health care system
for the better,
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it is a worthwhile endeavor.
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Hey everyone, it's Adrienne.
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Has health insurance, or the lack of it,
affected you or someone you care about?
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We want to hear from you
in the comments below.
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And while you're at it, like,
share and subscribe to AJ+.
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