RESPONSE TO COMMENT: That's a great point. Many employees have to go without insurance entirely. That is not the case for me. I am also lucky because I was able to select from three types of plans, all administered by the same carrier. I actually have a middle-of-the-road plan. Most providers understand that providing a higher level of care is win-win. Many providers (in my opinion, usually the specialists)are constantly raising that bar, whether it's because they are philanthropists or because they want to beat out the competition. In this case, I believe that this physician has a strong personal integrity and wants to revitalize the role of the primary care physician. OK, so that IS a little presumptuous on my part. This was just a standard primary care physician visit, and I just paid the standard co-pay. Everything was included in this. But think of it this way: I was so happy with the visit that I’ve committed to going regularly to check on my health. I am following up with the physician at the end of the month (another office visit & co-pay) to see if the treatment plan I’m doing is working. I’m also getting screening blood work done (another office visit & co-pay). I plan to regularly follow up with this physician (office visits & co-pays) to make sure I'm staying on top of things. I haven’t seen a primary care physician just to get a ‘check up’ since I was a kid... I'm 33. I had mistakenly considered my prenatal visits two years ago as ‘check ups’. Wrong. More importantly, I feel mentally invested in this patient/physician relationship. So, she’s just achieved a life-long patient. The lengthy and thorough initial interview (front end work for her) means more straight forward follow up (less back end work for her). It also means a more informed and compliant patient... again, this makes both of our lives easier. I was also so happy that I referred my husband to her. I'm so happy that I'm writing about the experience in this blog. Looking at long term health costs, her preventative medicine approach & focus of nutrition/life habits (1) saves the insurance company money and (2) helps to lower everyone’s healthcare costs. She just happens to focus on me as a person… that doesn’t cost her extra. She pays attention to how décor affects the patient experience and has awesome supportive staff that share this holistic approach. The whole office was carefully crafted to make the patient feel a certain way. Sure, she may not accept certain insurance... I have no idea. All I know is that my insurance plan is typical of many group plan policies. Most of the things that stick out in my mind... eye contact, empathy, honesty, analytical thought, a cohesive team, some nice paint & IKEA furniture isn't all that expensive.

My first response to reading this is that you MUST have Excellent insurance!!! Hopefully this can become a trend but I am skeptical.. I am glad you had such a great experience and I hope many others follow suit!