I have been moving most of my health care to India. I visit once a year and I get a full checkup for every thing that I can think of.

Unfortunately, we still pay for the top-tier medical insurance from DH's work, but the service is so bad.

My concierge PCP won’t see me when I am contagious sick. She will see me same day for non-contagious issues like UTIs or other bacterial infections.

I pay $2000/year for concierge, and I signed up so I could get same-day appointments when I was sick, but if I have to go to urgent care anyway (my insurance plan has a $250 urgent care copay), what’s the point?

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes doctor practices prefer to save slots for other issues that need to be diagnosed - because they have an burdensome schedule or that they have gotten burnt with insurance not reimbursing enough

Also, if you could be contagious that is another reason a doctor may not want sick patients in the office.

It is kind of amazing how doctors offices and urgent care clinics are generally so cavalier about contagious illness. Shouldn't they have quarantine booths for sick patients?

My pediatricians office ran urgent care for my kids, but they had a large team.

Your doctor has a full schedule. Go concierge or go somewhere else, or a accept that you don't need your specific doctor for acute cold and flu care.

It’s unreasonable and this is why we switched to a concierge doctor. We were always being told to go to urgent care for illnesses because they didn’t have appointments.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you want to get others sick op? Use telahealth.

a) it's telehealth, not telahealth
b) how can you test for strep or flu with a telehealth visit?

In fairness to the person who spelled it telahealth, the leading provider in the space is called teladoc.

This is akin to pastors and ministers closing their churches on Christmas.

My PCP is part of a large practice that has an acute care clinic. That’s who they’d schedule me with if I was sick and possibly had flu/sinus infection/bronchitis, etc.

My PCP can definitely see me when I’m sick. They have appts reserved for sick issues every day. It might not be my regular PcP, though I can usually get her..
I use John’s Hopkins Community physicians. They have several offices in MoCo.

My PCP doesn’t do sick visit but I love them for routine care, so I’d never change. For sick visit, their office does tele-visits with a NP and then I use a mix of Minute Clinic or urgent care as needed.

Sometimes doctor practices prefer to save slots for other issues that need to be diagnosed - because they have an burdensome schedule or that they have gotten burnt with insurance not reimbursing enough

Also, if you could be contagious that is another reason a doctor may not want sick patients in the office.

A cold I do not go. Severe prolonged coughing needs a chest exam. In person.

I am seen in person if I need testing or a check up after getting worse with a long or severe illness. Yes, they save appointments for sick patients at my practice. I wear a mask. There are only certain things that telehealth is good for.

I don’t know what you think the doctor could even do for that.