00:00:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz, a board-certified family medicine physician and the founder of Roots Health DPC in Forest Park, Illinois, shares her experiences and background. She expresses her passion for creating a healthcare solution that prioritizes patients and discusses her vision of improving healthcare quality while reducing costs through the Direct Primary Care model. The conversation begins with Dr. Diaz sharing her recent return from the Caribbean and her hobbies, including spear fishing and deep-sea fishing. When the discussion turns to her career, she reveals her attraction to family medicine, having enjoyed various aspects of medicine during medical school and residency. She then explains her decision to move back to the Midwest to balance work and family life. Her husband, also a physician, works in the gaming industry, specifically as a programmer for Call of Duty.

00:05:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz shares her experiences with the prioritization of profits over patient health in the medical community. She describes feeling frustrated as a physician, unable to deliver the care she wanted due to insurance companies dictating payment and affecting her ability to spend adequate time with patients. Dr. Diaz recalls a tipping point around 2017 when she entered corporate medicine, which made it clear that profits were the priority. Patients would ask about unnecessary fees and charges, and she couldn't provide satisfactory answers. The lack of transparency and inability to provide quality patient care led Dr. Diaz to explore the Direct Primary Care model, which resonated with her values and allowed her to create a better experience for her patients.

00:10:00 In this section of the "Direct Primary Care Is On The Rise!" podcast episode, Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses the shift from personal to corporate healthcare and the impact it has on patient care and physician burnout. She attributes this change to vertical integration, where insurance companies own healthcare providers and pharmacies, leading to less communication and autonomy for physicians. The lack of compensation for time spent outside the room and administrative tasks contributes to burnout, which Dr. Diaz refers to as moral injury. She emphasizes the importance of physicians' oath to do no harm and make decisions in the best interest of patient care but laments the lack of duty of care for corporate CEOs in healthcare. Dr. Diaz also mentions the Physicians Financial Summit, an event aimed at helping physicians prepare for a prosperous retirement, and expresses concern about the high healthcare costs in the US and the resulting poor outcomes compared to other industrialized nations.

00:15:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses the necessity of an alternative healthcare system like Direct Primary Care (DPC), which offers a higher quality of care at a reasonable cost. She shares a personal experience of a patient, a dog groomer, who suffered from recurring hand infections and the benefits she received from the DPC model, including the doctor's ability to get to know her and understand the underlying cause of her condition. Dr. Diaz also mentions that the relationship-based care in DPC is crucial because patients can communicate directly with their doctors, saving time and resources. However, she believes insurance companies may not be favorable towards the DPC model due to the potential loss of profits from markups on medications and lab tests.

00:20:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz explains the business model shifts in healthcare, with insurance premiums no longer being the primary source of revenue for healthcare providers. Large corporations like CVS and Etna are exploring new ways to generate profits, including direct primary care. This model offers comprehensive healthcare services for a monthly membership fee, which is a fraction of the cost of traditional insurance. Direct primary care operates on a membership model, allowing patients unlimited visits with no additional costs, enabling physicians to balance out care for patients with varying needs. This model contrasts with the fee-for-service model, where patients pay per visit and may not have guaranteed access to their physician. Direct primary care and concierge medicine are similar in patient experience but differ in cost. Direct primary care is gaining popularity among various primary care specialties, including OBGYN, Pediatrics, Internal Medicine, ER doctors, and even specialists like Dermatology, Urology, Gynecology, and Rheumatology. Physicians are increasingly turning to direct patient care to bypass the broken healthcare system's overhead and denials, allowing them to focus on their patients' needs.

00:25:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses the benefits of Direct Primary Care (DPC) for both patients and employers. DPC operates on a monthly fee model, allowing patients to access healthcare services as needed without the need for insurance. This model is particularly beneficial for families and working parents, who can save time and money by having quick and easy access to healthcare. Employers also benefit from DPC by removing the middleman between themselves and healthcare providers, resulting in cost savings. Employers pay a monthly fee to DPC providers, aligning incentives for both parties, and can offer customizable healthcare solutions to their employees. DPC is becoming increasingly popular as an alternative to traditional insurance-based care due to its cost savings and improved alignment of incentives for patients and employers.

00:30:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses the customizability of individual health insurance solutions for employers. She explains that employers, particularly small business owners, can partner with direct primary care providers to create plans tailored to their employees' specific needs. This includes access to various specialists and discounted rates for services. Dr. Diaz also mentions the development of a Direct Specialty Care Network to offer more choices for patients and better negotiate healthcare costs. The ultimate goal is to put healthcare decision-making back in the hands of physicians, improving patient care and reducing financial burden.

00:35:00 In this section of the episode, Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses the benefits of good healthcare options for employees from an employer's standpoint. She explains that having a great healthcare program leads to employee retention and higher productivity. The savings from not having high-cost traditional health insurance can be reinvested to grow a savings bucket for self-funding. Dr. Diaz emphasizes the importance of understanding the differences between health insurance and direct primary care, likening health insurance to car insurance for catastrophic events. For individuals not covered by an employer, she recommends exploring the direct primary care model or health share plans as alternatives to traditional insurance.

00:40:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz outlines various healthcare options for young families, focusing on health shares and direct primary care (DPC). She recommends health shares for independent individuals who qualify through the marketplace for high deductible, low premium plans. DPC can then be added as a supplement, providing better service and care at a lower cost. Dr. Diaz mentions Sedera as a good health share option and DPC Mapper as a resource for finding DPC doctors nationwide. She also shares success stories of companies, like Rosen Hotels in Florida, that have saved significant amounts of money by implementing self-funding and DPC for their employees. Dr. Diaz spends a considerable amount of her time working with small business owners and brokers to create DPC wrap-around plans, as well as providing telemedicine services and seeing patients in person. She finds the most impact in this area, believing it to be the future of healthcare.

00:45:00 Dr. Natasha Diaz discusses her work with Roots Health, a direct primary care (DPC) model aimed at providing better healthcare for employers and their employees. She shares her excitement about the potential impact on American companies and the formation of a coalition in the Chicago land area. Dr. Diaz also mentions the collaboration with other like-minded individuals and organizations, such as Rosetta Health and Dave Chase, to bring about positive changes in the healthcare system. She encourages keeping track of the number of businesses and employees affected by this model and invites listeners to connect with her through email or her website for more information.