Newton: 316.283.6655
Andover: 316.202.9990
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Newton: 316.283.6655
Andover: 316.202.9990
Two models. Both promise more time with your doctor, easier scheduling, and a healthcare experience that actually feels personal. So if you've been comparing Direct Primary Care and concierge medicine, you're probably wondering: what's actually different?
Quite a bit, it turns out.
Direct Primary Care removes insurance from your primary care completely and replaces it with a low flat monthly fee. Concierge medicine charges a high annual retainer on top of your existing insurance. One was designed to make quality primary care accessible to everyone. The other was designed for patients who can afford to pay for a premium experience on top of what they're already spending.
Understanding that distinction helps you make a smarter decision, not just about cost, but about what kind of care you actually want and what fits your life.
This article breaks down how both models work, what they cost, who they serve, and why Integrity Medicine chose Direct Primary Care for our patients in Newton and Andover, Kansas.
Direct Primary Care is a monthly membership where patients pay their doctor directly for primary care services. No insurance billing. No copays. No surprise bills. Direct Primary Care typically offers low monthly fees, does not participate in any payer programs, and applies your membership fees to a broader range of services.
Concierge medicine also uses a membership fee, but it layers that fee on top of the traditional insurance system. Patients still deal with insurance billing, copays, and insurance regulations alongside a much higher retainer fee. The membership buys better access and more time with your doctor. It doesn't remove the complexity of insurance from your life.
That's the clearest way to say it. One model simplifies your healthcare. The other upgrades your experience within a system that's still complicated.
Before we go further, there's a timely update that changes the financial picture for a lot of patients.
There have been recent legislative efforts to allow Direct Primary Care memberships to work more seamlessly with HSAs. Because rules can change, we recommend checking with your accountant or benefits advisor to confirm current eligibility.
Previously, the IRS treated Direct Primary Care membership fees similarly to insurance premiums, which created complications for patients trying to use HSA funds for their membership. That's no longer the case. For an arrangement to maintain your HSA eligibility, there are monthly fee caps of $150 for individuals and $300 for families. These limits will be adjusted annually for inflation after 2026.
Integrity Medicine's adult membership is $60 per month, well within that threshold. If you have an HSA paired with a high-deductible health plan, you can now use those pre-tax dollars to cover your Direct Primary Care membership. That makes an already affordable model more cost-effective. Talk to your accountant or benefits administrator to confirm how this applies to your specific situation.
The Direct Primary Care model allows providers to focus more on personalized care and less on administrative tasks. Because there's no per-visit billing, there's no financial incentive to rush you out the door or schedule more appointments than you need. Your doctor's revenue comes from your membership, not from the volume of services they bill. That single change reshapes the entire relationship.
Smaller patient panels, longer appointments, same-day or next-day scheduling, and direct access to your physician are all standard in a well-run Direct Primary Care practice. For non-emergencies, you reach your doctor by email or phone. For urgent situations, you can text or call directly. When something comes up, you reach your doctor, not a call center. If you want a deeper look at how the model actually functions day to day, our guide to how Direct Primary Care works in Kansas walks through the membership structure, what's typically included, and what to look for when comparing local practices.
At Integrity Medicine, our monthly membership starts at $30 for children through age 17, $60 for adults 18 to 44, $80 for adults 45 to 64, and $100 for patients over 65. That covers unlimited office visits, more than 30 in-office procedures, EKGs, allergy testing, well-woman exams, joint injections, minor surgeries, and direct access to your physician's personal contact information. Medications through our wholesale generic pharmacy typically run about 15% of standard retail cost. You can review the full list of what's included on our membership and pricing page.
One important clarification: Direct Primary Care does not replace insurance for hospitalizations, emergency care, or specialist visits. Most of our patients pair their membership with a high-deductible health plan or a medical sharing arrangement to cover those larger, less frequent expenses. The Direct Primary Care membership handles a large majority of your healthcare needs, the everyday stuff that makes up the bulk of what you actually use.
Concierge medicine, sometimes called boutique medicine, also operates on a membership model. Patients pay an annual fee to access a physician who keeps a smaller patient panel and offers more personalized attention. So far it sounds similar to Direct Primary Care.
Here's the critical difference. Unlike Direct Primary Care doctors, concierge physicians charge a patient's insurance company for their visit in addition to charging a membership fee. This allows concierge medical practices to have two forms of revenue while giving patients help paying for any services not covered by their membership fee.
So if you choose concierge medicine, you're still inside the insurance system. You may still owe copays at your visit. Your physician still has to comply with insurance documentation requirements and billing regulations. The membership fee earns you better access and more time, but it doesn't simplify your relationship with insurance. The administrative complexity doesn't go away. It just gets paired with a premium experience on top of it.
The average concierge medicine membership falls between $2,000 and $10,000 annually, though premium services can reach $50,000 or more. Monthly payment structures typically range from $200 to $800. Those fees come on top of whatever you're already paying for health insurance premiums, copays, and deductibles.
Knowing the definitions is one thing. Seeing how they play out across the things that actually matter to patients is another.
This is where the two models diverge most dramatically for the average Kansas family.
With Direct Primary Care, you pay a monthly membership fee directly to your doctor, which covers most of your primary care services. Concierge practices still work with insurance, which often means more paperwork, potential copays, and the usual insurance complications.
Concierge medicine fees can range from around $1,800 per year to as much as $25,000 for one year. Direct Primary Care membership fees are usually charged monthly, quarterly, or annually, whichever the patient prefers, and are typically much lower.
For a family of four in Newton or Andover, an Integrity Medicine membership would run roughly $180 per month: two adults in the 18-to-44 range plus two children. A comparable concierge arrangement for the same family in a major metro would typically cost several thousand dollars per year, plus ongoing insurance premiums and copays on top of that.
Because Direct Primary Care practices do not bill insurance, there are no copays per visit and no insurance documentation requirements like MACRA/MIPS or meaningful use regulations. Doctors can spend more of their time on patient care instead of checkbox documentation.
Concierge practices accept and bill insurance alongside the retainer fee. You're paying more and still dealing with the same system.
At Integrity Medicine, cutting out the insurance middleman wasn't a business decision. It was a care decision. Dr. Roeser founded Integrity Medicine in 2004 specifically because he wanted to practice medicine away from impersonal corporate healthcare. When insurance mandates and prior authorizations started blocking patients from getting the care they actually needed, he converted the practice to Direct Primary Care in 2017. No insurance involvement means no one telling us what we can or can't do for you.
Both models reduce physician panel sizes well below what you'd find in a traditional insurance-based practice, where a doctor might be managing 2,000 or more patients.
Concierge medicine typically limits doctors to 300 to 600 patients, allowing for highly individualized care and on-call availability. Direct Primary Care maintains similarly lean patient panels, averaging 400 to 800 members per physician, allowing for meaningful access and continuity, but at a lower cost than concierge.
In practice, both models give you far better access than traditional primary care. Same-day or next-day appointments, direct communication between visits, and a doctor who knows your history are realistic expectations in either setting.
This is where the underlying philosophies separate most clearly.
Concierge practices typically serve wealthier patients because they have insurance and can afford the high yearly fees. Direct Primary Care practices have been called "blue collar concierge practices." As long as patients can pay the monthly fee, it doesn't matter whether or not they have insurance. Anyone can benefit from the quality care offered by Direct Primary Care doctors.
Concierge medicine, by design, requires patients who can afford both an insurance plan and a substantial retainer fee on top of it. Direct Primary Care was built to deliver the best parts of that experience to everyone, including uninsured families, self-employed adults, small business employees, and people who simply want more from their doctor without paying boutique prices.
Direct Primary Care works well for a wide range of patients. The common thread isn't income level or insurance status. It's wanting primary care that actually works the way primary care is supposed to.
Families with young children often get the most obvious value. Kids need more sick visits, more school and sports physicals, more quick questions answered, and more follow-up care than most adults. At Integrity Medicine, children under 17 are $30 per month with a paid adult member. That covers everything from well-child exams to sports physicals to same-day sick visits, without a separate copay every time your child gets an ear infection.
Self-employed adults and small business owners tend to appreciate the simplicity of a flat monthly cost and the ability to reach their doctor directly without going through a referral chain or an insurance approval process. When your time is your income, not spending hours on hold with an insurance company has real dollar value.
Patients managing chronic conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, or thyroid disease often find Direct Primary Care particularly valuable. Regular check-ins don't require scheduling battles. Questions between visits get answered directly by email or phone for non-urgent matters, or by text or call when something more pressing comes up. Longer appointments mean your doctor actually understands what's going on with your health rather than reacting to one symptom at a time.
Adults on high-deductible health plans who want better day-to-day primary care access while keeping catastrophic coverage for major medical events are a natural fit. Pairing a Direct Primary Care membership with a high-deductible plan is one of the most common and cost-effective combinations our patients use, and with the 2026 HSA rule change, that combination now comes with real tax advantages too. Our post on whether Direct Primary Care is worth it for Kansas families walks through the math in more detail if you want to run the numbers for your household.
Patients without insurance aren't left out either. Direct Primary Care works whether you have coverage or not. You get the same access, the same physician, and the same flat monthly cost regardless of your insurance status.
Employers looking to offer a smarter health benefit for their team can also pair Direct Primary Care with existing coverage to reduce urgent care and emergency room spending while improving day-to-day access for employees. Our employer Direct Primary Care program is available at $60 per adult per month. For small businesses trying to compete on benefits without a large-company budget, that's a meaningful option.
Fairness matters here. Concierge medicine genuinely serves certain patients well. It's a narrower fit, but it's a real one.
Patients with complex, multi-system health conditions who want a primary care physician deeply involved in coordinating all of their care may find the added expense worthwhile. Some concierge practices include a level of care coordination where the physician accompanies patients to specialist visits or stays closely involved during hospital stays. For someone managing multiple serious conditions, that continuity has real value.
Executives and high-income individuals who travel frequently and need true around-the-clock physician availability from any location, including evenings, weekends, and when they're out of state, may find the premium justified by their specific needs.
Patients whose employers cover the concierge retainer as part of an executive benefit package face a different math entirely. When cost is removed from the equation, the decision becomes purely about what kind of care experience you prefer.
For the majority of patients, though, and especially for families and individuals in south-central Kansas, concierge medicine isn't a practical option. Dedicated concierge practices are concentrated in major metropolitan markets. The high annual retainer assumes you have both insurance and disposable income to layer on top of it. Most Kansas families, even those who want excellent primary care, are better served by a model built around accessibility rather than exclusivity.
If you're searching for premium primary care near Newton, Andover, Wichita, or surrounding communities in south-central Kansas, you'll find that dedicated concierge practices are rare in this region. The Kansas City metro has a small number of options. But between Wichita and Salina, Direct Primary Care is the realistic alternative to the traditional insurance-based system.
Integrity Medicine has two locations serving this area. Our Newton clinic is at 715 Medical Center Drive, Suite 200. Our Andover clinic is at 338 S. Andover Road, Suite 200, about 10 minutes south of Kansas Medical Center. Both locations offer the same membership-based, insurance-free primary care for individuals, families, and employers throughout the region.
The absence of concierge medicine in south-central Kansas isn't a gap in your options. It's an opportunity to see Direct Primary Care for what it actually is. Everything that makes concierge medicine appealing, including a doctor who knows your name and your history, same-day appointments, direct communication, and appointments that don't feel rushed, Direct Primary Care delivers at a price built for regular Kansas families rather than boutique budgets.
For patients closer to Wichita's eastern suburbs, the Andover location is the more convenient choice. For patients in Harvey County and communities west of the metro, Newton provides an accessible local option without a long drive. Direct Primary Care works best when the clinic is practical to use, not just affordable on paper.
If you're over 65, or if you're helping an aging parent navigate their healthcare options, this section is worth reading carefully.
Changing how you receive primary care after decades in the same system can feel like a big step. The Medicare question comes up often, and we want to answer it clearly. Integrity Medicine does not bill Medicare. Your membership fee covers your primary care the same way it does for any other member. You keep Medicare for hospitalizations, specialist visits, and major medical events. Your Direct Primary Care membership provides more accessible, relationship-based primary care, while Medicare continues to cover hospital and specialist services.
Our senior membership is $100 per month for patients over 65. We see patients through every stage of life, manage complex chronic conditions, coordinate care with specialists, and provide the kind of ongoing continuity that tends to get lost when patients are shuffled between different providers in a traditional Medicare setting. Your doctor knows your medication list. They know your history. You're not starting from scratch at every appointment. And when you have questions or concerns between visits, you can reach your doctor by email or phone for non-urgent matters, or by text or call when something more pressing comes up.
Is Direct Primary Care the same as concierge medicine?No. Both use a membership model and both offer better access than traditional care. But concierge medicine adds a layer of luxury service to the existing insurance system for a high fee, while Direct Primary Care is designed to replace the complexities of insurance-based primary care, restoring the doctor-patient relationship at an affordable cost for everyone. Different philosophies. Different price points. Different patient populations.
Is Direct Primary Care worth it if you already have insurance?Often, yes. Many patients pair Direct Primary Care with a high-deductible health plan. The Direct Primary Care membership covers their day-to-day primary care with better access and lower out-of-pocket costs than their insurance would provide. The insurance handles catastrophic and specialist expenses. With HSA compatibility now in place as of 2026, that combination also comes with a new tax advantage worth factoring into the math.
What are the disadvantages of concierge medicine?The biggest one is cost. Disadvantages of concierge medicine can include the higher cost associated with the annual retainer fee, potential limited insurance coverage, and the exclusivity of the model, which may not be accessible to all patients. You're also still operating inside the insurance system, so the administrative complexity doesn't go away. You're paying more to improve your experience within a system that's still the same system.
Is concierge medicine covered by insurance?The retainer fee is not covered by insurance. The concierge practice still bills your insurance for services rendered, so your insurance may pick up some costs. But the membership fee is always an out-of-pocket expense on top of your premiums, deductibles, and copays.
Can I use my HSA for a Direct Primary Care membership?Starting in 2026, individuals covered by certain Direct Primary Care service arrangements can contribute to an HSA while enrolled in a Direct Primary Care practice and use HSA funds tax-free to pay periodic membership fees. Monthly fee caps apply ($150 per month for individuals, $300 for families), so confirm your specific situation with your benefits administrator or accountant.
Why do doctors switch to Direct Primary Care or concierge medicine?Both models allow physicians to see fewer patients and spend more time with each one. Direct Primary Care removes the insurance billing system entirely, which cuts administrative burden and gives physicians more time for actual patient care. Most physicians who make the switch describe it as returning to the kind of medicine they went to medical school to practice.
Does Integrity Medicine accept insurance or Medicare?No. Integrity Medicine is a Direct Primary Care practice and does not bill insurance or Medicare. Your flat monthly membership covers your primary care. We also offer wholesale pricing on prescriptions, labs, and radiology through our partnerships, which is where many of our patients see significant additional savings.
