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The evidence doesn't say nurse practitioners and physician assistants are simply interchangeable with physicians. It says something more specific, and honestly more useful. It says that for the visit types that make up most of what primary care and concierge medicine actually deliver day to day, prevention, chronic disease management, education, relationship, the research consistently finds NP and PA led care landing on par with physician led care, and on the measures patients say they care about most, time and feeling heard, often landing ahead.

• Association of American Medical Colleges, physician workforce shortage projections (March 2024).
• Health Resources and Services Administration workforce projections, as reviewed in Journal of General Internal Medicine (2025).
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants entries.
• Neprash HT, et al., Medical Care (January 2021), EHR-based analysis of primary care visit duration.
• Swan M, et al., "Quality of Primary Care by Advanced Practice Nurses: A Systematic Review," International Journal for Quality in Health Care (2015).
• National survey study on NP patient satisfaction outcomes, Nursing Outlook (2019).
• Nice Healthcare literature summary on nurse practitioner outcomes and patient satisfaction.
• Health Affairs (2025) national study of concierge and direct primary care practice and clinician growth, 2018-2023.
• American Association of Nurse Practitioners, State Practice Environment data.
• American Academy of PAs, "PA Education: Preparation for Excellence."

Note: The practice example(s) described in this episode are a composite illustration drawn from patterns commonly reported across the concierge and direct primary care industry, not an account of a specific, verified individual or practice. This article is intended for educational and informational purposes for physicians and healthcare leaders. It does not constitute medical, legal, financial, or accounting advice. Workforce projections and state scope-of-practice laws change over time; readers should confirm current figures with the primary sources cited before relying on them for practice or policy decisions.

In this conversation, Dr. Kyra Bobinet and Michael Tetreault sit down to discuss the habenula and its role in motivation and setbacks, why the traditional compliance model works against how the brain actually changes, the Iterative Mindset as an alternative framework for physicians and patients, and how this thinking should shape the physician-patient relationship in concierge and membership-based practices. They also preview Fresh Tri Pro, ahead of Dr. Bobinet's appearance at the Concierge Medicine Forum this October.

Dr. Bobinet earned her MD from UCSF and her MPH from Harvard, teaches health behavior change at the Stanford Medicine AIM Lab, and is CEO and founder of Fresh Tri, a clinician-facing behavior-change platform built on the neuroscience of habit formation. She is the author of the bestselling Well-Designed Life and the newly released Unstoppable Brain, and co-developed the Iterative Mindset Inventory with mindset researcher Dr. Jeni Burnette of NC State University. She is an enrolled member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

The Story Your Patients Keep Telling Themselves (and How to Rewrite It) with Dr. Kyra Bobinet

Why do patients who genuinely want to get healthier so often fail to follow through? On this episode of the DocPreneur Leadership Podcast, host Michael Tetreault talks with Kyra Bobinet, MD, MPH, about the "know-do gap" and the neuroscience behind it.

This episode is educational and informational. It is not medical, legal, or financial advice.

Links:
Fresh Tri: https://freshtri.com
Iterative Mindset Quiz: https://freshtri.com/iterative-mindset-quiz/
Dr. Kyra Bobinet: https://drkyrabobinet.com
Contact Dr. Kyra Bobinet: https://drkyrabobinet.com/contact/
Unstoppable Brain Podcast (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@unstoppablebrainpod
Fresh Tri on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/freshtri/posts/?feedView=all
Fresh Tri on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fresh_tri/

We didn't stop at finding this pattern once. We checked it against 1,149 patients across the full archive, 416 from the early years of our data (2013 to 2018) and 733 from the recent years (2019 to 2024), asking the exact same question both times: what matters most to you?

By Michael Tetreault, Editor-in-Chief, Concierge Medicine Today

You know your medicine. Do you really know your practice?

Most physicians can explain their care in one sentence. Far fewer can say, honestly, whether their patients trust them, whether their marketing is actually reaching the people it's meant for, or whether someone quietly unhappy is about to leave without ever telling you why.

For eleven years, Concierge Medicine Today has been asking the people who matter most: the patients themselves. Why are you searching for a new doctor. Why are you leaving your last one. What matters most to you when you're choosing who to trust with your care. Over seven thousand patient conversations later, collected between 2013 and 2024, a pattern emerged that we didn't expect, and it's reshaping how we think this industry should market, welcome, and retain the patients it serves.

Concierge and membership medicine patients aren't one audience. They're four (LEARN MORE).

We tested a long list of variables against the data: age, income signals, geography, how patients found us, even how much they cared about the physical office space. Almost none of it mattered as much as we assumed. Hospitality and service, for instance, turned out to matter to nearly everyone, which means it isn't a dividing line at all. It's table stakes.

Two questions, and only two, consistently separated patients into meaningfully different groups:

1. How do they already feel about their current doctor? Happy, or ready for something new?
2. What do they want from insurance? Do they want their next doctor to still work with insurance and Medicare, or do they want independence from that system entirely?

Plot patients on those two questions, and four distinct groups appear, drawn from 561 patients who answered every question behind this model.

1. Level-Uppers, 29% of patients. These patients trust and like their current doctor (4.23 and 4.19 out of 5) but still want full independence from insurance (2.21 out of 5). They aren't fleeing a bad relationship. They're confidently reaching for something better before anything breaks. This group skews Baby Boomer and Gen X, with a meaningful Millennial presence, the youngest-skewing of the four.
2. Coverage Keepers, 27% of patients. The most loyal group in the data, with trust and like scores of 4.38 and 4.40, and the single highest insurance-importance score of any group we measured, 4.67. They aren't leaving anyone. They want the concierge experience added to a relationship they already trust, not traded away for it. The oldest-skewing group, heavily Baby Boomer.
3. Fresh-Starters, 27% of patients. Low trust and connection with their current doctor (2.65 and 2.56) and little interest in insurance compatibility (2.34). They're done compromising with the relationship and the system at the same time. This group spans every generation fairly evenly, and they are the most likely of the four to say, in their own words, that they're leaving because they feel like a number.
4. Careful Movers, 16% of patients, the smallest group. Unhappy with their current doctor (2.60 and 2.60) but still needing Medicare or insurance to work, 4.64, nearly the highest score in the entire dataset. This is a patient solving two problems at once: a doctor who isn't working, and a financial reality that has to keep working. That's a harder position than any other group faces, which is likely why they tend to be the most time-pressured to find a fit.

We didn't stop at finding this pattern once. We checked it against 1,149 patients across the full archive, 416 from the early years of our data (2013 to 2018) and 733 from the recent years (2019 to 2024), asking the exact same question both times: what matters most to you?

The answer: 74.3% in the early years. 74.5% in the recent years. Virtually unchanged.

For eleven straight years, roughly three out of every four patients who came looking for a concierge or membership doctor were looking for a relationship first, not a perk, not a discount. That was true a decade ago. It's true today. A separate, open-ended question tells the same story even more sharply: patients describing their search in their own words used relationship and trust language nearly three times as often in the recent years as in the early ones.

If you're marketing to "the ideal concierge patient" as though there's one of them, you're likely speaking clearly to one of these four groups and mumbling to the other three.

A few things worth doing with this, starting this week:

• Tag your last twenty patient inquiries. How did they feel about their prior doctor? Did insurance come up, and how? Most practices find that one or two of these four types dominate their actual local market, not all four evenly.
• Write different messages for different problems. A Coverage Keeper needs reassurance about continuity. A Fresh-Starter needs permission to start over. The same headline will not land with both of them, no matter how well it's written.
• Track results by type going forward, not just by lead count. A year of that data becomes your own practice-level proof of where this model holds, and where your market looks different from the national picture.

We built a free tool that applies this exact research to your own practice. It's called the Patient Match Score, ten questions, about two minutes, and it tells you, from most to least likely, which of these four types your current positioning is actually attracting.

Take the Patient Match Score →

For the full research, methodology, and sourcing behind this model, see The CMT Patient Study.

This article is based on the CMT Patient Study, Concierge Medicine Today's proprietary patient psychographic model, built from patient survey data collected 2013–2024. This is a self-selected sample of patients actively searching for a concierge or membership-based doctor through CMT's own channels, not a nationally representative sample. Full methodology and disclaimers are available on the Patient Study page. Nothing in this article constitutes medical, legal, or financial advice. © 2007–2026 Concierge Medicine Today, LLC.

Toyota didn't beat Mercedes by getting cheaper. It beat Mercedes by getting closer to the customer first. Here's the six-year research obsession behind the Lexus LS 400, and why undercutting your way to a full panel is a strategy that has already failed in a dozen other industries, and what Harvard's own pricing research says to do instead.

By Michael Tetreault, Editor-In-Chief, Concierge Medicine Today

"I'm a car guy, so bear with me on this one. There will be some good points [in this article], I promise. I know enough about engines to self-diagnose and wrench on them myself. Driving an old car with lifter problems through North Dakota and southern Canada in the '90s will teach you that."

~Michael Tetreault

Today's article isn't about concierge medicine directly. It's about a distant cousin in the subscription-based healthcare world, direct primary care, or DPC.

Over the past two decades, I've noticed more and more that there is a moment almost every DPC or low-cost, membership-based practice hits around year two or three, when the patient panel quietly stalls (catch the car pun).

Growth that used to feel automatic starts to flatten out, and you notice it before you can quite explain it.

That's usually right about when a competitor down the road launches at $59 to $93 a month, and a quiet voice in your head says: just drop the price. Fill the seats. Worry about margin later.

That instinct is understandable. It is also, according to decades of business research and a growing body of data inside concierge and membership medicine itself, one of the fastest ways to damage the very practice you built to serve patients better.

This is not a scolding. It is a strategy conversation, grounded in evidence, for low-cost subscription-based physicians who left, or are considering leaving, the insurance-driven system specifically to build something sustainable that has a low cost for the patients because you feel your altruistic nature pulling you to do so.

But, if the goal is sustainability, the tactic matters.

Let's zoom out for a moment.

A price war is what happens when competitors inside the same market repeatedly cut prices to undercut one another, creating a cycle where each side matches or beats the last cut. This "price-cutting momentum" pulls in competitors who feel forced to follow the initial price cut, and while it can create short-term benefits for the buyer, it erodes the profit margins of everyone competing.

Harvard Business School researchers Akshay Rao and Mark Bergen, writing in Harvard Business Review, built a career studying exactly this dynamic across industries. Their conclusion, echoed by strategists since, is blunt: most price wars are avoidable, and the businesses that start them or get pulled into them rarely come out ahead.

The Kinsta business blog, summarizing HBR's own internal analysis of the question, put it plainly: when businesses were asked whether they should engage in a price war, the overwhelming answer was "no." Instead, the research points toward differentiation as the more durable response to a low-cost competitor.

There is a second, quieter finding in that same research that some physicians should sit with. Price itself shapes how a buyer perceives value, and a price set too low signals that the product is cheap, in the way a price set too high can signal it is a ripoff. In other words, the discount that was supposed to win the patient can be the very thing that tells the patient your care is not worth much.

It's indeed, a delicate balance and it's different for every practice and every doctor. Why? Because of who you work for and serve: the patient. Every patient is different. Every practice is different. That makes this topic challenging but it's a conversation worth having because I want to see your practice thrive and more importantly, survive in your community.

Michael Porter, the Harvard strategist whose work still anchors most first-year MBA curricula, described three durable paths to competitive advantage: cost leadership, differentiation, or a focused niche strategy.

A company chooses to compete either through lower costs than its rivals or by differentiating itself along dimensions the customer actually values, in order to command a higher price. What Porter warned against was the position most panic-driven price cuts land a practice in.

Porter's phrase for it is "stuck in the middle," and it describes an organization trying to be all things to all people, with no distinct competitive advantage as a result. Businesses caught here typically perform the worst in their industry precisely because they never committed to one strength. A DPC practice that quietly lowers its price to compete on cost, while still trying to deliver same-day access, unhurried visits, and so-called affordable white-glove service, is not competing on cost leadership. It is trying to sell a premium product at a discount price, and the math does not hold.

Today, a medical practice or a company stuck in this position cannot beat a true cost leader on price, because it never built the operational discipline or scale to sustain that price, and it cannot beat a differentiator on the experience it promised, because the discipline required to deliver that experience costs money. Both promises erode at once.

This is not theoretical for DPC and low-cost membership medicine practices. It is visible in the industry's own numbers.

The 2026 State of DPC survey, distributed through the DPC Alliance and Hint Health's network, found a direct relationship between panel size and price. Practices with fewer than 200 patients averaged $105.93 per member per month, practices with 201 to 500 patients averaged $99.28, and practices with more than 500 patients averaged $77.74 per member per month. Read plainly, the larger the panel, the lower the average price charged per patient. That pattern is exactly what Porter's framework predicts happens to practices chasing volume without a differentiation strategy to protect price. It is worth noting this figure comes from Hint Health, a technology vendor with a commercial interest in DPC's growth, so it should be read as directional industry data rather than an independent audit. It is nonetheless the most comprehensive dataset the movement currently has.

At the same time, the broader market is not short on room to compete on value instead of price. More than half of private healthcare consumers rank the cost of care as the most dissatisfying part of their current healthcare experience, and DPC's growth has been driven in large part by employers and patients who are tired of opaque, escalating costs elsewhere in the system, not by DPC being the cheapest option on paper. Employers now fund the majority, roughly 60 percent, of active DPC memberships, according to Hint Health's 2026 trends report, which signals that the buyers filling panels today are increasingly sophisticated purchasers evaluating value, retention, and outcomes, not simply hunting for the lowest sticker price.

Regional pricing tells a similar story. Northeast DPC pricing rose 33 percent over five years, from $60 to $80 a month, even as national demand for the model accelerated. Practices in that region did not grow by discounting. They grew while raising price, in a market that was simultaneously expanding.

Here is the part of this conversation that is specific to medicine and does not show up in a typical business school case study on price wars.

Physicians are trained, deliberately and repeatedly, to put the patient's welfare ahead of their own. Medical professionalism itself is defined in the literature by principles of excellence, accountability, altruism, integrity, and humanism, all oriented around the patient relationship. That formation is not incidental. It is the point of medical education, and it is a genuine strength of the profession that should never be coached out of a physician.

But that same formation has a side effect worth naming honestly. A rigorous study out of the University of Cologne and University of Rennes, published in the Journal of Health Economics, measured patient-regarding altruism in 733 medical students at different stages of training. The researchers found that patient-regarding altruism is highest among freshmen, declines significantly through the middle years of medical study, and rises again in the final year as students begin assisting in clinical practice. Students with lower income expectations showed higher altruism scores overall.

Sit with that last finding.

The training that makes physicians excellent, trustworthy, patient-first clinicians also correlates with a documented discomfort around charging what care is actually worth. That discomfort is admirable in the exam room. It becomes a strategic liability in the business office, where it quietly nudges a physician toward the lowest defensible price rather than the price that reflects the value delivered, the access provided, and the sustainability required to keep serving that same patient for the next twenty years.

This is not a call to abandon altruism. It is a call to separate two different questions that get tangled together under stress: am I a good doctor and am I running a sustainable practice. A price built out of guilt is not more altruistic than a price built out of strategy. A closed practice serves no one.

Medicine is not the first field to face this exact temptation, and the businesses that raced to the bottom on price rarely tell a happy ending.

Rao and Bergen's HBR research spans industries from B2B and agribusiness to healthcare and the nonprofit sector, and the throughline in that body of work is consistent: firms that respond to a low-price competitor by cutting their own price usually shrink the whole market's profitability without gaining durable share, because the competitor simply cuts again. The winners in price wars, when there are any, tend to be the largest players with the deepest balance sheets, the ones who can absorb losses the longest. A solo or small-group physician practice is almost never that player, and should not try to be.

The lesson for low-cost DPC physicians is not abstract. It is Porter's choice, stated as a decision every practice has to make deliberately rather than by drift: compete on being demonstrably, operationally the lowest-cost, highest-efficiency provider in your market, which requires real scale and real systems, or compete on being demonstrably different in a way patients value enough to pay for. Trying to hold both at once is what leaves a practice, in Porter's words, stuck in the middle, with margins too thin to sustain the very things that made the practice worth choosing in the first place.

Circling back to my car guy roots, there is an automotive story worth every physician's attention here, because it is one of the clearest business case studies ever produced on the exact question this article is asking you if you're a DPC physician. It comes from Hagerty's "Revelations" series, hosted by Jason Cammisa, on the origin of the 1989 Lexus LS 400, and it has been retold in detail across automotive trade press and in Chester Dawson's book Lexus: The Relentless Pursuit.

The origin story matters as much as the engineering. Toyota's first American export, the Toyopet Crown, was a flop, selling only a few hundred units before Toyota pulled it from the market in the late 1950s. Twenty five years of steady rebuilding later, Toyota had become the largest importer of vehicles into the United States, and that success triggered a protectionist response. In the early 1980s, the U.S. government pressured Japan into so-called voluntary export restraints, capping Japanese auto imports at roughly 1.7 million vehicles a year. With volume capped by government policy, Toyota USA's Yukiyasu Togo pushed a different lever: if the company could not sell more cars, it needed to sell more profitable ones. That constraint, not ambition alone, is what pushed Toyota into the luxury segment.

In 1983, Toyota's then chairman Eiji Toyoda greenlit a secret effort known as Project F1, for Flagship One. Where a typical vehicle program of that era might use around 200 engineers and a few hundred million dollars, F1 was reportedly given no fixed budget and a development team of roughly 1,400 engineers, 60 designers, and thousands of additional technicians and support staff, spread across a six-year effort widely reported to have cost in the neighborhood of a billion dollars.

What that team actually did is the part physicians should study closely. Rather than guess at what luxury buyers wanted, a team of designers and engineers relocated to a rented house in Laguna Beach, California, and spent months directly observing affluent Americans: watching valet stands outside country clubs, studying the furniture in high-end homes, and even analyzing the leather scent inside Jaguar interiors closely enough to reverse-engineer the tanning process. They tested switchgear and steering wheel ergonomics against how women with long, manicured nails actually interact with a dashboard. This is the practice Toyota calls genchi genbutsu, going to see for yourself, rather than relying on assumptions about the customer.

Separately, Toyota's research uncovered something more specific and more useful than "people want a cheaper luxury car." Mercedes-Benz owners loved the prestige of their cars but consistently described the dealership experience itself, the pressure, the wait, the sense of being talked down to, as miserable. Lexus rebuilt the entire buying experience around that single insight. Sales moved from an elevated desk to a shared coffee table, removing the physical power imbalance of a traditional car sale. Only 80 of roughly 1,500 dealer applicants were approved to sell the car, each required to invest several million dollars and submit to ongoing customer satisfaction audits. The product and the experience of buying it were treated as a single, inseparable offer.

The engineering discipline underneath all of this was, by most independent accounts, extreme. Chief engineer Ichiro Suzuki pursued a drag coefficient of 0.29, well below the S-Class's 0.36 to 0.37, without relying on a rear spoiler, which he considered an inelegant shortcut. Interior noise was engineered down to roughly 58 decibels versus about 60 for the S-Class, and multiple road tests reported the LS 400 was as quiet at 125 miles per hour as its German rivals were at 95. Prototypes logged well over a million miles of testing, and engineers reportedly disassembled competitor vehicles to study exactly how they failed over years of use, then engineered around each weakness.

When the LS 400 launched in 1989, it was priced at roughly $35,000, commonly cited as about half the price, or as much as $30,000 less, than a comparably equipped Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The price gap was so large that BMW reportedly suggested Toyota was selling the car at a loss. Within two years, Lexus had overtaken Mercedes-Benz as the best-selling luxury import brand in the United States and topped J.D. Power's quality and service rankings, and Mercedes is reported to have lost roughly a quarter of its U.S. sales in the aftermath.

Here is the part physicians should sit with. The low price was not the strategy. It was the output of the strategy. Toyota did not set out to build a cheaper Mercedes and work backward. It spent six years and enormous resources removing the specific frustrations its own research showed were driving prestige-loving customers away, then engineered a manufacturing process disciplined enough to make that quality repeatable at scale, and only after that work was done did it set a price the market would reward. The aggressive price was possible because the operational excellence and the customer research underneath it were real, not because anyone at Toyota decided to compete by cutting corners.

This is the distinction that gets lost when a DPC or low-cost membership medicine practice drops its membership fee simply to fill a panel out of fear. Toyota's price was earned through relentless, well-funded engineering and firsthand study of exactly what its target customer resented about the existing options. A practice that lowers its price without first doing that same work, actually going to see for yourself what frustrates the patients you want to serve, and building a practice that removes those specific frustrations, is doing the opposite of what Lexus did. It is cutting the price before it has earned the right to.

The translatable lesson is not "charge less." It is this: find out, directly and specifically, what your patients are actually frustrated by in the healthcare experience they already have, build a practice that removes that frustration with real discipline, treat the entire patient experience, not just the clinical visit, as part of the product, and let price follow from that work rather than substitute for it. Toyota spent six years in the field before it touched the price tag. Most practices considering a discount have not spent six weeks asking patients what specifically is broken in the care they are currently getting.

None of this means price is fixed or that access should be reserved only for the wealthy. It means the starting question changes.

Instead of asking what is the lowest price that will fill my panel, the more durable question is what does my practice do that a patient cannot get anywhere else in this market, and does my price reflect that honestly. That might be same-day access. It might be visit length. It might be a specific clinical focus, a specific population, or a specific relationship to a local employer. Differentiation does not require the highest price in the market. It requires a clear, honest reason for the price you have chosen, one you can say out loud to a patient without flinching.

Panel growth built on discounting tends to attract patients who are price-shopping and will leave the moment a cheaper option appears next door. Panel growth built on a clear, differentiated value proposition tends to attract patients who stay, refer, and tolerate a price increase because they understand what they are paying for.

This article is intended for educational and informational purposes for physicians and healthcare leaders. It does not constitute financial, legal, accounting, or medical advice, and practice pricing decisions should be made in consultation with qualified financial and legal advisors familiar with your specific market and regulatory environment.

1. Rao, Akshay R. and Bergen, Mark E. "How to Fight a Price War." Harvard Business Review, March-April 2000. hbr.org/2000/03/how-to-fight-a-price-war
2. "Price war." Wikipedia, accessed August 2026. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_war
3. "How a Race to the Bottom Hurts Your Business's Bottom Line." Kinsta, July 15, 2024. kinsta.com/blog/race-to-the-bottom
4. Porter, Michael E. Competitive Strategy (1980) and Competitive Advantage (1985), Harvard Business School Press. Summarized via "Porter's generic strategies," Wikipedia, and Strategic Management Insight, strategicmanagementinsight.com/tools/porters-three-generic-strategies
5. "State of DPC 2026: Key Takeaways From DPC Alliance's Physician Survey." Hint Health, July 18, 2026. blog.hint.com/state-of-dpc-2026-key-takeaways-from-the-dpc-alliances-physician-survey
6. "Hint Health Releases 2026 Direct Primary Care Trends Report." Hint Health, April 23, 2026, distributed via PR Newswire, Yahoo Finance, and Morningstar.
7. "DPC Membership Pricing Trends." Hint Health Blog, June 24, 2022. blog.hint.com/dpc-membership-pricing-trends
8. "High cost of health care may be boosting direct primary care membership." Medical Economics, November 16, 2025. medicaleconomics.com/view/high-cost-of-health-care-may-be-boosting-direct-primary-care-membership
9. Sagebien, Julia; L'Haridon, Olivier; Wiesen, Daniel; et al. "The formation of physician altruism." Journal of Health Economics, Vol. 87, 2023. sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167629622001308 (also indexed on PubMed, ID 36603361)
10. "Professional identity formation of clinical medical students during and beyond the pandemic." PMC, National Library of Medicine. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11150932
11. Cammisa, Jason. "The Absurd Engineering Obsession Behind the 1989 Lexus LS 400." Hagerty Revelations, YouTube, youtu.be/i15Ii4yetLM
12. "How the Lexus LS400 Crashed the Luxury Party." Autoblog, October 2, 2025. autoblog.com/features/how-the-lexus-ls400-crashed-the-luxury-party
13. "How Lexus defeated 'the best car in the world.'" Motoring Research, July 25, 2024. motoringresearch.com/car-news/lexus-ls-400-review
14. "Lexus LS 400: 'the finest V8 engine in the world.'" Cult Classics, Adrian Flux, August 21, 2023. adrianflux.co.uk/cult-classics/lexus-ls-400-the-finest-v8-engine-in-the-world
15. Dawson, Chester. Lexus: The Relentless Pursuit. John Wiley & Sons, revised edition. Publisher synopsis via AbeBooks, abebooks.com/9780470828045
16. A detailed companion recap of the Hagerty Revelations episode, covering Project F1 staffing, the Laguna Beach research house, the coffee-table dealership model, and Suzuki's engineering targets, was supplied directly by the editor. Its original publisher and byline could not be independently confirmed at time of writing. Facts drawn from it (drag coefficient, price gap, engineer count, dealership vetting) were cross-checked against sources 11 through 15 above before inclusion, and the editor should confirm original attribution before publication.

She left academic medicine to build the practice her own family needed. Here's how, and why.

Dr. Priyanka Chopra spent years as an academic hospitalist watching a fragmented healthcare system fail the people who needed it most, including, eventually, her own family. That experience became the reason she left. Alongside her husband, she founded Nivaan Health, a mobile, in-home concierge practice in Miami built on a simple premise: patients deserve time, trust, and genuine care, not rushed visits and disconnected specialists. 

In this episode, Dr. Chopra talks with Michael Tetreault about what it actually took to make the leap: the role her spouse played as both partner and support system, how she's used AI to handle the operational and branding work most physicians never trained for, and why she measures success by restored patient functionality rather than traditional volume metrics. It's a candid look at what "unreasonable hospitality" means in practice, and a practical guide for any physician quietly wondering if there's a better way to build a career in medicine.

Learn more about Nivaan Health: https://nivaan.health/our-story

"Patients have already told the market what they're willing to pay for a health outcome," CMT Editor-in-Chief Michael Tetreault said in an interview for this article. "A GLP-1 subscription and a concierge medicine membership now cost about the same, roughly $3,000 a year. The question isn't whether patients will invest in their health. It's who earns that investment."

By Editorial Staff, Concierge Medicine Today, August 2026 (See full list of citations and sources and disclaimers at end of article)

Please note, this is market and editorial analysis, not medical, legal, financial, or accounting advice, and it does not evaluate the clinical merits of GLP-1 medications, which is a conversation between a patient and their physician. Concierge medicine is not, and should never be marketed as, a treatment alternative to any prescription medication, including GLP-1s. That distinction matters enough that we're stating it plainly here, before we go any further, and readers should keep it in mind throughout.

That said, let's unpack the topic. FULL ARTICLE: https://conciergemedicinetoday.org/2026/08/24/what-glp-1-marketing-reveals-about-concierge-medicines-opportunity/

A patient on a compounded GLP-1 and a patient enrolled in a concierge medicine practice are now spending almost exactly the same amount each year. Roughly $3,000.

We put the real numbers next to each other: GLP-1 telehealth pricing, our own 2026 concierge medicine benchmark survey, direct primary care spend, urgent care, etc.

The overlap doesn't stop at price. The age group spending the most on GLP-1s, 50 to 64, is also the core of the concierge medicine patient base.

Patients have already decided they'll pay out of pocket for a health outcome. That part isn't up for debate anymore. What's still open is who earns that trust, and why.

To be clear about what we're saying and what we're not: concierge medicine is not a substitute for any medication a patient and their physician decide is right for them. What it can be is the unhurried relationship where that conversation actually happens, something a fifteen-minute visit rarely allows.

Full research, sourcing, and what this means for how practices market themselves are in the article.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational and editorial purposes. It does not constitute medical, legal, financial, or accounting advice, and it takes no position on the clinical use, safety, or efficacy of GLP-1 medications or any other prescription treatment. Concierge medicine as described here, is a healthcare membership business model. It is not a treatment, and it should not be marketed or described as an alternative or substitute for any medication a patient and their physician have determined is appropriate. Physicians and practices using any messaging from this article in their own marketing are responsible for ensuring compliance with FTC truth-in-advertising standards and their state medical board's advertising rules, including avoiding any claim, direct or implied, that concierge membership treats, replaces, or competes with a specific medication or clinical intervention. Figures labeled as estimates reflect Concierge Medicine Today's own analysis of published per-unit data and are identified as such throughout. Readers should consult a licensed physician, attorney, or financial advisor for guidance specific to their situation.

1. glpchart.com. "GLP-1 Telehealth Price Report 2026." 2026.
2. GLP-1 Telemedicine. "The Real Cost of Telehealth GLP-1 Programs in 2026: Subscription Fees, Hidden Charges, and What You're Actually Paying For." 2026.
3. Chronos Body Health & Wellness. "The Real Cost of GLP-1 Weight Loss Medications in 2026: What You Should Know Before You Start." April 14, 2026.
4. Concierge Medicine Today. 2026 Industry Pricing Benchmark. 2026. (cited via Concierge MD Finder, "How Concierge Medicine Pricing Works in 2026: A Real Cost Breakdown," May 30, 2026)
5. Connectedly Health. "DPC Pricing Index by State (2026): Direct Primary Care Costs." February 15, 2026.
6. Medical Economics. "Five surprising findings about the state of direct primary care," citing the Direct Primary Care Alliance 2026 physician survey. 2026.
7. Mira Health (talktomira.com). "Urgent Care Visit Cost With and Without Insurance (2026 Update)." July 8, 2026.
8. ClinicAds. "Telehealth Marketing in 2026: The Complete Guide to Compliant, Profitable Patient Acquisition." July 17, 2026.
9. EMARKETER. "GLP-1 drugs dominate prescription TV ad spend," citing iSpot.tv data. 2025.
10. EMARKETER. "Pharma linear TV ad decline in H1 driven by steep GLP-1 spending cuts." July 16, 2026.
11. Foley & Lardner LLP. "GLP-1 Compliance: FDA Targets Telehealth Marketing in 30 New Warning Letters." March 12, 2026.
12. Sheppard Mullin. "FDA's Focus Returns to Compounding and Telehealth: Another Wave of Warning Letters." June 18, 2026.
13. Target Patients MD. "GLP-1 Provider Marketing That Works Right Now." May 12, 2026.
14. KFF. "Poll: 1 in 8 Adults Say They Are Currently Taking a GLP-1 Drug for Weight Loss, Diabetes or Another Condition, Even as Half Say the Drugs Are Difficult to Afford." November 14, 2025.
15. RAND Corporation. "New Weight Loss Drugs: GLP-1 Agonist Use and Side Effects in the United States." August 6, 2025.
16. Concierge MD Finder. "U.S. Concierge Medicine Market Report 2026: 2,601 Practices, DPC vs Traditional, Pricing," citing the Concierge Medicine 2026-2030 industry report. May 30, 2026.
17. Straits Research. "Direct Primary Care Market Size, Top Share, Demand" industry report. July 21, 2025.
18. Drexel News Blog. "Q+A: Is the Growth of Direct Primary Care Expanding Health Care Access Where It's Needed Most?," citing Goldstein et al., Annals of Family Medicine. November 26, 2024.
19. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. "Urgent Care Center and Retail Health Clinic Use: United States, 2024." NCHS Data Brief No. 562.
20. American Academy of Private Physicians (AAPP). 2026 concierge physician count estimate. (cited via Concierge MD Finder, "How Concierge Medicine Pricing Works in 2026," May 30, 2026)

The Story Your Patients Keep Telling Themselves (and How to Rewrite It) with Dr. Kyra Bobinet

Why do patients who genuinely want to get healthier so often fail to follow through? On this episode of the DocPreneur Leadership Podcast, host Michael Tetreault talks with Kyra Bobinet, MD, MPH, about the "know-do gap" and the neuroscience behind it.

Dr. Bobinet earned her MD from UCSF and her MPH from Harvard, teaches health behavior change at the Stanford Medicine AIM Lab, and is CEO and founder of Fresh Tri, a clinician-facing behavior-change platform built on the neuroscience of habit formation. She is the author of the bestselling Well-Designed Life and the newly released Unstoppable Brain, and co-developed the Iterative Mindset Inventory with mindset researcher Dr. Jeni Burnette of NC State University. She is an enrolled member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

In this conversation, Dr. Bobinet and Michael discuss the habenula and its role in motivation and setbacks, why the traditional compliance model works against how the brain actually changes, the Iterative Mindset as an alternative framework for physicians and patients, and how this thinking should shape the physician-patient relationship in concierge and membership-based practices. They also preview Fresh Tri Pro, ahead of Dr. Bobinet's appearance at the Concierge Medicine Forum this October.

This episode is educational and informational. It is not medical, legal, or financial advice.

Links:
Fresh Tri: https://freshtri.com
Iterative Mindset Quiz: https://freshtri.com/iterative-mindset-quiz/
Dr. Kyra Bobinet: https://drkyrabobinet.com
Contact Dr. Kyra Bobinet: https://drkyrabobinet.com/contact/
Unstoppable Brain Podcast (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@unstoppablebrainpod
Fresh Tri on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/freshtri/posts/?feedView=all
Fresh Tri on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fresh_tri/

Moving Cancer Upstream: Dr. Jose Barreau on Prevention, Prime Time, and the Fight to Detect Cancer Earlier

Dr. Jose Barreau spent decades on the wrong side of a timeline every oncologist knows too well, treating cancer after it was found, often at a stage when the window for real intervention had already closed. That experience became the founding premise behind PreOncology, the company he built to move cancer care upstream from treatment to prevention.

Barreau's work recently reached a much bigger audience. He's featured in The Chase: Inside the Race to Cure Cancer, a documentary now streaming on Amazon Prime Video that follows real patient experiences and the healthcare teams navigating one of life's hardest journeys. In this conversation, we talk about what it was like being part of that project, why the film's message about early detection lines up so closely with PreOncology's mission, and what he wants viewers to take away from it.

We also get into the founding story behind PreOncology itself: why conventional screening was never built for the individual, why the technology to detect cancer earlier already exists but has never been properly integrated, and how an oncologist-led model is trying to close that gap. Barreau also shares lessons from his earlier work founding Doc Halo and Halo Health, healthcare communication platforms used by over 300,000 physicians nationwide.

Dr. Barreau will be speaking live at the 2026 Concierge Medicine Forum this October in Atlanta, GA, where he'll go deeper into what personalized cancer surveillance actually looks like in practice. If this conversation resonates, that session is one worth planning your schedule around.

Learn more about Dr. Barreau and PreOncology: https://preoncology.com/our-story/
Watch The Chase: Inside the Race to Cure Cancer on Amazon Prime Video.

This episode is educational and informational. Nothing discussed should be considered medical advice.

Dr. Charles "Trey" Williams didn't set out to disrupt pediatrics. He set out to be the kind of doctor his own kids deserved. After a decade in corporate, insurance-driven practice and a stint inside a health-tech startup, Williams reached the same conclusion many physicians on this podcast have reached: the system was built for throughput, not relationships, and pediatrics runs on relationships.

In this conversation, Williams walks through the founding of The Peds MD, a concierge house-call pediatric practice built around what he calls Adaptive Primary Care, a model shaped by five pillars: environmental flexibility, true 24/7 access, root-cause methodology, direct communication, and removing the barriers that keep families from reaching their physician. We discuss what it actually took to leave a corporate practice, how an MBA changed the way he designed the business, and why he believes the future of pediatrics depends on doctors willing to rebuild the relationship model from the ground up.

This is a conversation for any physician asking whether there's a better way to practice, and for any parent wondering what pediatric care could look like when the doctor picks up.

Learn more about Dr. Williams and The Peds MD: https://www.thepedsmd.com/about

This episode is educational and informational. Nothing discussed should be considered medical, legal, or financial advice.

Every concierge website on the internet says it. Your patients aren't looking for "personalized." They're looking for a specific person they can trust with their family's health. You ARE that person. The work is showing them — before the first phone call.

ABOUT OUR GUEST, GRAHAM KUHN, FOUNDER, FOCUS FILMS

LEARN MORE: https://focusfilms.com/

I came to this work the long way. I studied opera in college but never became an opera singer — I moved to Atlanta after graduation to join a professional a cappella group, then spent twenty-plus years as a professional singer doing everything except opera.

Along the way I started working in music and video at churches, and discovered I liked telling visual stories more than performing them. The shift to personalized medicine wasn't a marketing decision. It was personal. My wife and I have always believed in medicine that uses pharmaceuticals when truly necessary and holistic, lifestyle, and integrative care when those actually move the needle.

What I've found doing this work is that direct care physicians are the doctors most willing to prescribe what actually helps the patient in front of them — not just what insurance will pay for. Those stories deserve to be told well. 

I also know what these doctors are walking into when they leave the system. They didn't quit because they wanted to run businesses. They quit because they were burning out trying to practice medicine the way they were trained to. Now they're business owners anyway, and most of them weren't taught that part. The marketing, the systems, the strategy — none of that was in medical school. Our team's job is to handle the parts they weren't trained for so they can focus on the parts they were. 

Based in Atlanta. Available for engagements across Georgia, with selective travel for the right practices nationwide.

GET CONNECTED WITH FOCUS FILMS LEARN MORE:

https://focusfilms.com/

We're delighted today to sit down with MDVIP Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Jeffrey Lin to talk about so building a sustainable practice, finding joy in the practice of medicine, and what's happening what the next chapter of Primary Care looks like.

Dr. Jeffrey Lin is a board-certified cardiologist, internist, and the newly appointed Chief Medical Officer of MDVIP, the nation's leading network supporting physicians in personalized, preventive, and relationship-driven primary care. A Harvard Medical School graduate and Yale summa cum laude, Dr. Lin completed advanced fellowship training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Columbia University before building a distinguished career that spans academic medicine, elite sports cardiology as a consultant to the NFL Players Association, and executive leadership at Devoted Health, where he was the company's first physician hire and helped build a patient-centered care model serving over 400,000 members across 29 states. He joins MDVIP at a pivotal moment in the organization's growth, bringing with him a career-long conviction that prevention is a long game, that physician joy is inseparable from patient outcomes, and that the future of primary care depends on giving doctors the time and the tools to actually know their patients.

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BOCA RATON, Fla. – April 22, 2026 – MDVIP, the national leader in supporting physicians to provide personalized, preventive, and primary care, today announced the appointment of Dr. Jeffrey Lin as Chief Medical Officer. A board-certified cardiologist and accomplished healthcare executive, Dr. Lin will lead MDVIP's clinical strategy and delivery as the company continues to expand its preventive and relationship-driven primary care model nationwide. Dr. Lin will also collaborate with the network's Medical Advisory Board on MDVIP's current and future offerings.

The appointment reflects MDVIP's investment in physician leadership that deeply understands both the patient and provider experience, reinforcing the company's commitment to long-term health outcomes, proactive prevention, and a care model that gives doctors the time and tools to deliver truly personalized care.

A cardiologist and internist by training, Dr. Lin has a longstanding commitment to prevention and optimizing health through data-driven, lifestyle-oriented approaches. He joins MDVIP from Devoted Health, where he served as National Medical Director and was the company's first physician hire, responsible for building its clinical care platform from the ground up. Since 2019, he helped lead the development and scaling of a comprehensive, patient-centered care model integrating preventive care, chronic disease management, and longitudinal wellness for primary care patients across the country, growing the clinical team to serve over 400,000 members across 29 states.

As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Lin will work closely with affiliated physicians and the MDVIP team to enhance the MDVIP experience for patients and providers alike. His priorities include strengthening MDVIP's preventive and wellness programs, supporting physicians transitioning into more manageable practice sizes, and expanding the MDVIP model to new physician segments and patient populations across different life stages.

"MDVIP was built on the belief that primary care should be proactive, personal and sustainable for physicians," said Larry Kutscher, CEO and Board Chairman of MDVIP. "Dr. Lin has devoted his career to those same principles, designing care models that prioritize prevention, meaningful time with patients and better long-term health. He will be a powerful advocate for our physician community and a key partner in shaping the future of MDVIP."

Dr. Lin's passion for MDVIP's mission is rooted in his early years in practice, when he saw firsthand how fragmented, specialist-heavy care consumed patients' lives and made it difficult to focus on prevention and long-term health.

"As a cardiologist, I've always viewed health as a long game," said Dr. Jeffrey Lin, Chief Medical Officer of MDVIP. "The choices we make in our 40s and 60s shape the next 30 years of our lives. MDVIP has spent more than 25 years building a model that gives physicians the time and tools to focus on prevention and real relationships with patients. I'm excited to help bring that kind of care to more doctors and patients across the country."

Dr. Lin also emphasized the importance of elevating the physician experience. "You can't deliver great long-term outcomes if the people providing care are burnt out," he added. "I'm looking forward to partnering with our affiliated clinicians to bring more joy back into their practice and help patients live longer, healthier lives."

With the appointment of Dr. Lin, MDVIP is beginning a new chapter in its growth story, doubling down on personalized, relationship-centered care and expanding its influence among patients and physicians nationwide.

About Dr. Jeffrey Lin
Dr. Jeffrey Lin is a board-certified cardiologist, internist, and an accomplished physician executive dedicated to advancing personalized, preventive, and relationship-driven care. He previously served as National Medical Director at Devoted Health, a tech-enabled Medicare Advantage organization, where he's helped lead the development and scaling of a comprehensive, patient-centered care model nationwide since 2019. A cardiologist by training, Dr. Lin has a longstanding commitment to prevention and optimizing cardiovascular health through data-driven, lifestyle-oriented approaches. Earlier in his career, he served as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach and Co-Director of Cardiac Rehabilitation, where he built a thriving ambulatory cardiology practice and developed programs that enabled patients to achieve meaningful, sustained improvements in heart health. Dr. Lin's experience also includes caring for elite and professional athletes as a cardiology consultant to the National Football League Players Association, as well as leading clinical research on cardiovascular performance and endurance. His work has been published in leading medical journals, including the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Circulation. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology. Dr. Lin earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and graduated summa cum laude from Yale University. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Columbia University Medical Center, followed by advanced fellowship training in cardiovascular medicine, sports cardiology, and cardiac imaging at Massachusetts General Hospital and Columbia University.

Thousands of physician-owned private practices go out of business every single year. This does not mean it is impossible to thrive but you do need to play by different rules.

Decreasing reimbursements and the higher costs of delivering healthcare services have made it difficult for many private practices to be profitable but you can thrive.

LEARN MORE: https://entremd.com/method-book/

The Profitable Private Practice Playbook is the blueprint that will get you there.

This step-by-step guide to profits in your private practice will show you:

• Simple mistakes that cost you thousands of dollars every month

• How to make the transition to savvy physician entrepreneur

• How to attract the right number of patients

• How to empower your team to become revenue generators themselves

• How to get paid for the work you already do

The result will be a practice that helps a lot more patients, creates financial freedom for you, and gives you back your time so you can live life on your terms.

Dr. Nneka Unachukwu is a board-certified pediatrician and the founder and CEO of Ivy League Pediatrics outside of Atlanta, Georgia. She graduated from the University of Nigeria College of Medicine and completed her residency in New Jersey before opening her own practice. After honing her entrepreneurial skills, Dr. Una created the EntreMD business school, podcast, and community to help physicians build personal brands around their expertise, open practices, and develop product lines. Featured in Forbes and a member of the Forbes Business Council, she has helped doctors all over the world leverage entrepreneurship to build lives they love.

Hosted by Michael Tetreault | Editor-in-Chief, Concierge Medicine Today

In one of the most comprehensive episodes in DocPreneur Leadership Podcast history, host Michael Tetreault takes an honest, evidence-based, and encouraging look at the cash-pay and subscription-based primary care landscape — who it serves, how it works, where it's heading, and what every physician and advanced practice clinician needs to understand before making a career-defining decision.

This episode doesn't take sides. It takes a clear-eyed look at the full picture — including the parts that don't always make it into the conference keynote.

The Foundation

Not all subscription-based primary care models are the same. Two models operating in this space share surface-level similarities but are structurally distinct businesses with different economic logic, different patient populations, and different long-term trajectories. Understanding which one you're considering — and why — changes everything about how you plan.

A Lesson From Healthcare History

Before committing to any practice model, it helps to understand what happened to the movements that came before it. This episode traces three instructive parallels: the micropractice and ideal medical practice movement of the early 2000s; the decades-long fight for healthcare price transparency and what happened when physicians finally got it; and the rise and reality check of retail health — what scaled, what didn't, and why. The common thread in every model that has achieved durable scale in American healthcare is the same: structural fit with the economic environment, not ideological purity.

Two Pathways, One Brand Name

The episode walks through both economic models in the cash-pay primary care space — the purist, cash-only, no-insurance model and the employer-integrated model — explaining how each works, who each serves, and what the financial picture actually looks like for physicians considering either path. The revenue math is done out loud. The sustainability data from peer-reviewed research is cited. The patient demographic fit for each model is examined honestly and specifically.

Who Each Model Serves — and Where Other Models Fit Better

A detailed breakdown of the patient populations each model genuinely serves well — and an honest, evidence-based look at the patient populations where other models may be a better structural fit. Including Medicare-eligible patients, patients with complex chronic disease, lower-income households, and employees of small and mid-sized businesses.

The Overlooked Opportunity — NPs, PAs, and Advanced Practice Clinicians

One of the most significant and underexplored opportunities in subscription-based healthcare delivery today is the direct-care model as a pathway for nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other advanced practice clinicians. The evidence on NP and PA-led primary care outcomes is strong and peer-reviewed. The physician shortage projections make the need urgent. And the organizational infrastructure for advanced practice clinician-led direct-care practices is largely unbuilt — which means the opportunity belongs to whoever moves first.

The Organizational Landscape

An honest look at what the multiplicity of organizations, coalitions, and alliances in the cash-pay primary care space tells us — and what research on professional association dynamics says about the long-term implications of organizational fragmentation for legislative effectiveness and individual practice planning.

One Brand, Two Directions

Drawing on four documented historical parallels from the history of American medicine — the AMA and managed care, osteopathic medicine's identity divide, family medicine's emergence as a separate specialty, and the micropractice movement — the episode makes the case that two communities with genuinely different economic interests and regulatory priorities currently sharing a brand name may, consistent with historical precedent, find their own distinct professional homes over time. This is presented as pattern recognition grounded in verified historical evidence — and as practical planning context for physicians building practices today.

The Tax and Structuring Update

A clear, practical summary of the 2025 "One Big Beautiful Bill" Act changes — effective January 2026 — and what they mean for HSA eligibility of cash-pay membership fees. What qualifies, what doesn't, and why legal counsel is essential before making any representations to patients about tax-advantaged payment options.

Eight Questions Before You Commit

A practical pre-decision checklist — eight specific questions every physician or advanced practice clinician should be able to answer clearly before committing to any cash-pay practice pathway.

• Cash-pay primary care and concierge medicine are not the same model, do not serve the same patient populations, and should not be evaluated as interchangeable alternatives.
• The purist cash-pay model has grown from approximately 100 practices in 2009 to over 2,100 by 2023 — real and meaningful growth. The financial sustainability data, however, reflects consistent challenges that peer-reviewed research has documented specifically in lower-income markets and solo practice settings.
• The employer-integrated pathway has stronger structural sustainability — multiple revenue streams, embedded benefit relationships, and documented employer cost reductions of 12 to 20 percent over three to five years.
• A December 2025 Johns Hopkins study found concierge and cash-pay primary care practices combined grew 83.1 percent between 2018 and 2023. The employer-integrated model is the primary driver of that growth trajectory.
• Concierge medicine — particularly the PCM model — is not retreating. The global concierge medicine market is projected to surpass $34 billion by 2032 and is growing at a compound annual rate that outpaces most healthcare market segments.
• The National Academy of Medicine's 2021 Future of Nursing report, AAMC physician shortage projections, and peer-reviewed NP/PA outcomes research collectively point to advanced practice clinician-led direct-care models as one of the most significant underexplored opportunities in subscription-based healthcare delivery.
• Pattern recognition from healthcare history — price transparency, retail health, the micropractice movement — consistently shows that the distance between a compelling healthcare idea and durable scaled impact is longer and more complicated than early advocacy suggests.
• Models that have achieved durable scale in American primary care share one characteristic: structural fit with the economic environment, not independence from it.

All claims in this episode are supported by published, verifiable sources. Full citations below.

Micropractice and Practice Model History

• Moore, G. (2002). "Accountability and Improvement in Physician Practice." Family Medicine.
• Moore, G. & Showstack, J. (2003). "Primary Care Medicine in Crisis." Health Affairs. healthaffairs.org
• AAFP TransforMED Initiative. (2006). aafp.org
• Nutting, P.A. et al. (2010). "Initial Lessons From the First National Demonstration Project on Practice Transformation to a Patient-Centered Medical Home." Annals of Family Medicine.
• Rittenhouse, D.R. et al. (2009). "Primary Care and Accountable Care." New England Journal of Medicine.
• Rittenhouse, D.R. & Shortell, S.M. (2009). "The Patient-Centered Medical Home." JAMA.

Price Transparency Research

• Pathak, Y. & Muhlestein, D. (2024). "Public Awareness and Use of Price Transparency: Report From a National Survey." West Health Institute / Gallup. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
• Parente, S.T. (2023). "Estimating the Impact of New Health Price Transparency Policies." Inquiry.pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
• ScienceDirect. (2025). "Outcomes of Price Transparency Policies for Healthcare Services in the United States: A Systematic Review." sciencedirect.com

Retail Health

• Fein, A.J. (2017). "Retail Clinic Check Up: CVS Retrenches, Walgreens Outsources, Kroger Expands." Drug Channels. drugchannels.net
• CNBC. (2024). "Why Walmart, Walgreens, CVS Retail Health Clinic Experiment Is Struggling." cnbc.com
• Healthcare Finance News. (2023). "Retail Clinics Seeing Utilization Soar, Popularity Grow." healthcarefinancenews.com
• MedCity News. (2023). "Retail Clinics Are Gaining Momentum." medcitynews.com

Cash-Pay and Subscription Primary Care Market Data

• MedCity News. (March 2026). "DPC Is Scaling — The Financing Architecture Isn't Ready." medcitynews.com
• Johns Hopkins. (December 2025). Study on concierge and cash-pay practice growth 2018–2023. As cited in MedCity News, March 2026.
• Liaw, W. et al. (2024). "Direct Primary Care: Financial Analysis and Potential to Reshape the U.S. Healthcare Landscape." Journal of General Internal Medicine. springer.com
• Lujan, D.Y. (2025). "Why Direct Primary Care Models Fail." KevinMD. kevinmd.com
• Doan, L. et al. (2019). "Physician Perspectives on Direct Primary Care." Family Medicine.
• Eskew, P.M. & Klink, K. (2015). "Direct Primary Care: Practice Distribution and Cost Across the Nation." Health Affairs. healthaffairs.org
• Tseng, P. et al. (2018). "Administrative Costs Associated With Physician Billing and Insurance-Related Activities." JAMA Internal Medicine.
• Medscape Physician Compensation Report. (2023). medscape.com

Employer-Integrated Model

• Spann, S.J. et al. (2020). "Employer-Sponsored Direct Primary Care." Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
• National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions. (2021). purchaseralliance.org
• Kaiser Family Foundation. (2023). Employer Health Benefits Annual Survey. kff.org
• National Business Group on Health. (2022). businessgrouphealth.org
• Employers Health Coalition. (2022). employershealthcoalition.org

Patient Demographics and Population Health

• Anderson, G.F. (2010). "Chronic Conditions: Making the Case for Ongoing Care." Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
• Tikkanen, R. & Abrams, M.K. (2020). "U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective." Commonwealth Fund.commonwealthfund.org
• Collins, S.R. et al. (2022). "Paying for It: How Health Insurance and Healthcare Costs Are Shaping the Lives of American Adults." Commonwealth Fund. commonwealthfund.org
• Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2023). "Contingent and Alternative Employment Arrangements." bls.gov
• Petterson, S. et al. (2012). "Unequal Distribution of the U.S. Primary Care Workforce." Annals of Family Medicine.

Advanced Practice Clinicians and Nursing

• Laurant, M. et al. (2019). "Revision of Professional Roles and Quality Improvement in Primary Care." New England Journal of Medicine.
• Naylor, M.D. & Kurtzman, E.T. (2010). "The Role of Nurse Practitioners in Reinventing Primary Care." Health Affairs. healthaffairs.org
• National Academy of Medicine. (2021). "The Future of Nursing 2020–2030." nationalacademies.org
• AAMC. (2021). "The Complexities of Physician Supply and Demand: Projections from 2019–2034." aamc.org

Legal, Tax, and Compliance

• Eischen, J. (2025). Legal Commentary on Cash Practice Structuring. eischenlawoffice.com
• DLA Piper. (2025). "Paying for Direct Primary Care Arrangements With HSAs." dlapiper.com
• IRS Notice 26-05. irs.gov
• CMS. "Opt-Out Affidavits and Private Contracts." cms.gov

Organizational and Professional Identity Research

• Hoff, T.J. (2010). Practice Under Pressure: Primary Care Physicians and Their Medicine in the Twenty-First Century. Rutgers University Press.
• Scott, W.R. (2008). Institutions and Organizations: Ideas and Interests. SAGE Publications.
• Freidson, E. (2001). Professionalism: The Third Logic. University of Chicago Press.
• Wolinsky, H. & Brune, T. (1994). The Serpent on the Staff: The Unhealthy Politics of the American Medical Association. Putnam.
• Gevitz, N. (2004). The DOs: Osteopathic Medicine in America. Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Stephens, G.G. (1989). "Family Medicine as Counterculture." Journal of Family Practice.
• Colwill, J.M. (1992). "Where Have All the Primary Care Applicants Gone?" New England Journal of Medicine.
• Meltzer, D.O. & Chung, J.W. (2014). "The Population-Based Physician Workforce." Health Affairs.healthaffairs.org
• Bodenheimer, T. & Pham, H.H. (2010). "Primary Care: Current Problems and Proposed Solutions." Health Affairs. healthaffairs.org
• Grumbach, K. & Grundy, P. (2010). "Outcomes of Implementing Patient Centered Medical Home Interventions." JAMA.

Concierge Medicine Market Data

• Grand View Research. (2022). Concierge Medicine Market Size & Growth Report. grandviewresearch.com
• Precedence Research. (2023). U.S. Concierge Medicine Market Size and Forecast. globenewswire.com
• MDVIP. (2020). Personalized Primary Care Reduces ER Visits, Hospitalizations, and Outpatient Expenditures.mdvip.com
• AAPP / Software Advice. (2023). "Concierge Medicine Salary and Definition." softwareadvice.com

The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today, LLC, an independent healthcare leadership publication. This episode and its accompanying summary are intended for educational and informational purposes only.

Nothing in this episode or summary constitutes medical, legal, financial, or accounting advice. The information presented reflects publicly available research, published data, and editorial observation, and is not intended to replace the guidance of qualified medical, legal, financial, or business professionals.

All factual claims are supported by named, verifiable third-party sources, which are cited in full above. Concierge Medicine Today makes no guarantee regarding the completeness or currency of external sources cited and encourages listeners to verify information independently.

References to specific organizations, publications, legal decisions, or market data are provided for educational context only. Mention of any organization, publication, or individual does not constitute endorsement, and no commercial relationship exists between Concierge Medicine Today and any source cited in this episode unless otherwise disclosed.

Physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other clinicians considering any practice model change are strongly encouraged to seek qualified legal counsel with specific experience in healthcare compliance, tax structuring, and the applicable regulatory environment in their state before making any practice or business decisions.

© 2007–2026 Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction or distribution of this content without written permission is prohibited.

For concierge physicians looking to deliver the kind of ultra-personalized, proactive care their patients expect and deserve, this episode offers a grounded look at where the technology is today, what it requires to implement, and why the physician-patient relationship remains irreplaceable at the center of it all.

Learn more: bioscope.ai

Guest: Don Brown, MD — Founder & CEO, Bioscope.ai

Topic: AI as a Clinical Colleague — 

Bioscope.ai is the brainchild of serial tech entrepreneur, Don Brown. In 2017, Don gave the commencement address to the largest medical school in the US which happens to be his alma mater - the Indiana University School of Medicine. During his remarks, Don told the newly minted physicians that soon they would be working with AI not as a search engine, nor as a medical encyclopedia, but as a colleague. As Don describes it, "You could have heard a pin drop. The comment went over like a lead balloon."

Yet less than ten years later, Don and his team formed Bioscope.ai to make that vision a reality. In early 2025, Bill Gates caused a much greater stir in the healthcare community by predicting that within a decade, the need for most physicians would disappear. Bioscope.ai believes that Bill is dead wrong. The need for human physicians will be greater than ever as they are not replaced by AI but empowered by it - turned into the super-human clinicians they all dreamed of being while going through medical school and practicing medicine. The hope of the Bioscope.ai team is that living, breathing, and caring human physicians will finally be able to deliver the sort of ultra-tailored, personalized care they've always aspired to.

Don is self-funding the Bioscope.ai initiative, so the company has taken no venture capital or other outside investment. As the son of a coal miner and later Army sergeant with an eighth-grade education, Don grew up in a double-wide trailer on Army bases until his father moved the family to the big city (Indianapolis) after retiring from the military following a year-long deployment in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive of 1967. After finishing medical school, Don unexpectedly became a high-tech entrepreneur with several successes including two of the first three software IPOs in the state of Indiana. After selling Interactive Intelligence (NASDAQ:ININ) in 2016 for $1.4 billion, Don donated $30 million to start the Brown Immunotherapy Center at the IU School of Medicine and has continued his entrepreneurial journey. Don and the Bioscope.ai team are dedicated to leveraging recent advancements in genomics, cloud data systems, artificial intelligence, and other fields to turn primary care physicians into superheroes for their patients.
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Read more:

Learn more: bioscope.ai

In this episode of the DocPreneur Leadership Podcast, host Michael Tetreault sits down with Alex Muckerman, Senior Manager at ECG Management Consultants, for a candid, strategy-first conversation about how health systems are thinking about — and in some cases, finally acting on — concierge and membership-based medicine as a legitimate service line.

Alex brings a rare combination of management consulting rigor and deep operational knowledge of the concierge medicine landscape. He's worked with health systems and medical groups across the country, designing and implementing customized concierge and direct primary care models that are built to last — not just to check a box.

In this conversation, we cover:

• Why more health systems are taking concierge medicine seriously right now
• What a well-designed concierge medicine service line actually looks like
• How to align a concierge model with your organization's broader ambulatory strategy
• The common mistakes health systems make when entering this space
• What physicians inside large systems need to understand about this shift
• And what the evolving primary care market means for the future of relationship-based medicine

Whether you're a physician entrepreneur, a practice leader, or a health system executive, this is a conversation worth your time.

ABOUT ALEX MUCKERMAN

Alex Muckerman is a Senior Manager at ECG Management Consultants, a national leader in healthcare business strategy and one of the most respected management consulting firms in the industry.

Alex brings more than eight years of combined experience across ambulatory strategy, medical group operations, provider compensation, revenue cycle management, and concierge medicine practice model development. He specializes in conducting data-driven ambulatory enterprise performance evaluations and has led practice assessments and financial turnaround initiatives for organizations ranging from large, multispecialty health system–owned medical groups to small independent practices.

He has extensive expertise in concierge medicine service line development and implementation, and is recognized for his ability to design customized concierge and direct primary care business models that meet patient demand while generating sustainable financial returns.

Alex holds an MBA in Healthcare Management, Strategy, and Consulting from Washington University in St. Louis — Olin Business School, and previously served as a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, where he worked with the Veterans Health Administration on clinical and financial systems development.

He is a thoughtful voice on how health systems can approach membership-based medicine not as a trend — but as a strategic imperative.

CONNECT WITH ALEX MUCKERMAN & ECG

• 🔗 Alex's ECG and LinkedIn Profiles:  ecgmc.com/about/team/amuckerman and https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexmuckerman/ 
• 📄 Article — Aligning Primary Care Models with Evolving Market Dynamics: ecgmc.com/insights/article/aligning-primary-care-models-with-evolving-market-dynamics
• 📄 Blog — It's Time for Health Systems to Adopt a Concierge Medicine Service Line Strategy: ecgmc.com/insights/blog/1644

© 2007–2026 Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. All rights reserved. Content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, financial, or professional advice. CMT is not liable for errors, omissions, or any loss arising from use of this content. By using this site you agree to our Terms, Conditions & Privacy Policy. Content may not be duplicated or reprinted without permission.

What does proactive, personalized healthcare actually look like in practice?

In this episode of the DocPreneur Leadership Podcast, host Michael Tetreault sits down with Keith Bozeman and Kailah Murphy from MEDgevity — a collaborative health company designed to support concierge physicians and their patients through an integrated, team-based care model.

MEDgevity functions as an extension of the physician's team, combining board-certified physician oversight with registered dietitians and exercise physiologists to bridge gaps that traditional healthcare often leaves behind. Their virtual-first approach brings together advanced screenings, biomarker analysis, genetic insights, and performance benchmarks to help patients identify risks early and build personalized strategies for longevity and performance.

In this conversation, Keith and Kailah speak candidly about the dangers of nutritional misinformation, the power of micro-habits and whole foods in building sustainable health outcomes, and why muscle preservation deserves far more attention than most wellness trends deliver.

For concierge physicians, the MEDgevity model offers something practical and timely — a way to extend the reach of your care team, reduce physician workload, and give patients coordinated, longitudinal support that goes well beyond the annual physical.

Nothing in this episode constitutes medical, legal, or financial advice.

🔗 Resources Mentioned

🌐 MEDgevity — medgevityhealth.com

📄 About MEDgevity — medgevityhealth.com/about

👥 Meet the Team — medgevityhealth.com/our-team

CMT is pulling this one from the vault this week — because this conversation captures something that's hard to teach but impossible to miss: the "it factor" that helps physicians not just survive in concierge medicine, but truly thrive.

So, what happens when concierge medicine meets lifestyle medicine? Dr. Dorothy Serna, founder of North Cypress Internal Medicine and Wellness in Houston, Texas, has a pretty compelling answer.

To learn more, visit: https://drserna.com

Dr. Serna walks us through this week why she left high-volume, transactional care behind and built something different — a practice rooted in time, trust, and real transformation. Extended visits. 24/7 direct access. A smaller patient panel that finally lets her practice medicine the way it was meant to be practiced.

She also breaks down the six pillars of lifestyle health — nutrition, physical activity, stress management, sleep, social connection, and avoiding risky substances — and makes clear these aren't wellness buzzwords. In her practice, they're frontline clinical tools for preventing and reversing chronic disease.

And we get honest about the hard stuff too — physician burnout, doctor self-care, what a real membership model transition looks like, and why the team you build around your patients matters as much as the care you deliver.

If you've been running on the hamster wheel and quietly wondering if there's a better way forward — don't skip this one.

The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. Guest views are their own and do not constitute medical, legal, or financial advice. Consult qualified professionals before making practice decisions.

If you're building — or seriously considering — a membership-based practice, you don't have to figure this out in isolation.

Explore leadership insights, operational frameworks, and real-world case studies:

• Concierge Medicine Today Leadership Hub & Knowledge Center
• Submit a question, article, or perspective
• Join us at the industry's annual conference in Atlanta every October — where physicians, operators, and innovators come together to build better systems, not just better ideas.

• Physicians considering concierge, hybrid, or DPC models

• Practice owners and administrators

• Healthcare investors and operators

• Policy professionals and analysts

• Anyone tracking the future of primary care

If this episode resonated with you, share it with a colleague who's asking hard questions about sustainability, burnout, or the future of their practice. These conversations shape the next generation of care.

This content is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered medical, legal, financial, or professional advice.

Why Operational Gaps in Independent Medicine Are a Systems Problem — Not a Physician Problem

By Michael Tetreault, Host, DocPreneur Leadership Podcast | Editor-In-Chief, Concierge Medicine Today

There's a pattern showing up across independent medicine — in Direct Primary Care, in concierge practices, in membership-based models of every size.

Highly trained physicians keep asking what look like basic business and technology questions.

And the most common response? Frustration. Eye rolls. The quiet assumption that these doctors just aren't cut out for ownership.

That response is wrong. And it's worth slowing down to understand why.

Start With First Principles

What are we actually asking physicians to do when we invite them into independent practice?

We're asking them to step out of employed models — where operations, technology, billing, and compliance are handled by someone else — and into full ownership of every one of those functions. Clinical. Operational. Financial. Often overnight. Often without a structured transition.

Then we express surprise when gaps appear.

That's not a physician problem. That's a systems problem.

When you remove the infrastructure without replacing it, gaps aren't a sign of failure. They're the predictable, entirely logical outcome of an incomplete transition.

What Forums Reveal — and What They Can't Fix

Peer forums in independent medicine have become something they were never designed to be: de facto training systems.

Physicians turn to them because something has to fill the gap. And forums offer speed, community, and real-world experience. That matters.

But forums are reactive by nature. They answer the question in front of them. They don't build the foundational readiness that prevents the question from needing to be asked in the first place.

Repeated "basic" questions in those spaces aren't annoyances. They're signals. They're telling us that structured onboarding for independent practice doesn't yet exist at scale — and that the profession is quietly improvising around that absence every single day.

The Real Leadership Question

If independent medicine is going to grow — if concierge and membership-based care is going to fulfill its potential to reshape how Americans experience primary care — it has to become something more than a movement.

It has to become a system.

That means scalable onboarding. Structured operational frameworks. High-trust training environments where physicians can ask the questions they need to ask without social penalty.

Clinical excellence got them here. Operational readiness is what sustains them.

The difference between those two things isn't a character flaw. It's a training gap. And training gaps are solvable.

In This Episode, We Explore:

• Why operational gaps show up in otherwise high-performing physicians
• The difference between intelligence and operational readiness
• Why peer forums can't — and shouldn't — carry the burden of onboarding
• What scalable, high-trust training actually looks like in membership-based care
• How better systems — not better criticism — move this model forward

The Bottom Line

The next phase of leadership in independent medicine isn't just about inspiring physicians to build differently.

It's about giving them the structured foundations to do it well.

That's repeatable. That's transferable. That's the work.

If you're building — or seriously considering — a membership-based practice, you don't have to figure this out in isolation.

Explore leadership insights, operational frameworks, and real-world case studies:

• Concierge Medicine Today Leadership Hub & Knowledge Center
• Submit a question, article, or perspective
• Join us at the industry's annual conference in Atlanta every October — where physicians, operators, and innovators come together to build better systems, not just better ideas.

This content is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered medical, legal, financial, or professional advice.

If you're building — or seriously considering — a membership-based practice, you don't have to figure this out in isolation.

Explore leadership insights, operational frameworks, and real-world case studies:

• Concierge Medicine Today Leadership Hub & Knowledge Center
• Submit a question, article, or perspective
• Join us at the industry's annual conference in Atlanta every October — where physicians, operators, and innovators come together to build better systems, not just better ideas.

• Physicians considering concierge, hybrid, or DPC models

• Practice owners and administrators

• Healthcare investors and operators

• Policy professionals and analysts

• Anyone tracking the future of primary care

If this episode resonated with you, share it with a colleague who's asking hard questions about sustainability, burnout, or the future of their practice. These conversations shape the next generation of care.

This content is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered medical, legal, financial, or professional advice.

We've all sat through boring medical lectures. If you've been invited to speak, here are some helpful tips from pro presenters to make your next opportunity the one people remember.

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com

👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views are the speaker's own. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

✅ The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

The patient experience doesn't start at the front desk — it starts with how your team feels about coming to work. And most practices spend far more time thinking about clinical protocols than the culture that either supports or undermines everything else.

🌐 jmco.com/hr-solutions

Julie Kniseley, President of James Moore HR Solutions, has spent 30 years helping organizations build strong, people-centered teams. In this conversation, she and Michael Tetreault discuss what retention, culture, and staff alignment actually look like in a concierge or membership-based practice — and why getting this right is one of the highest-leverage investments a physician owner can make.

Connect with Julie: Julie.Kniseley@jmco.com

ConciergeMedicineToday.org · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Our guest, CEO, Premal Shah, Ph.D. of MyOme, a precision health company using whole-genome sequencing to make proactive, personalized care accessible through leading concierge and executive health clinics.

Topic: How top-tier clinics are using MyOme's whole-genome platform to differentiate their care model, strengthen prevention programs, and build long-term patient trust.

Learn More At: MyOme.com

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com
👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views are the speaker's own. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

✅ The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Our guest: Kat McGraw MD, FHM, CPE, Chief Medical Officer at Guava Health.

Guava's mission is to empower people to understand and improve their health.

Learn More at: https://guavahealth.com/

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com
👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views are the speaker's own. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

✅ The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Concierge medicine and direct primary care didn't just grow — they surged more than 80% in five years, according to new research published in Health Affairs. The headlines are calling it a threat to access and equity. The data tells a more complicated story.

In this solo episode, Michael Tetreault breaks down what's really driving physicians toward membership-based models — burnout, broken reimbursement, prior authorization overload, and a primary care system that was already failing long before concierge medicine showed up to expose it.

Research referenced: Health Affairs, Harvard Medical School, AMA, MedPAC, and AAMC.

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most physicians think about branding as a logo, a website, or a tagline. Their patients think about it as every single moment they felt seen, rushed, confused, or cared for — and those two definitions almost never match.

In this solo episode, Michael Tetreault breaks down what concierge and membership-based practices consistently get wrong about their brand, why the patient experience is the brand, and what it actually takes to close that gap.

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most high-functioning people are very good at performing wellness while quietly ignoring the misalignment underneath — and physicians are the most skilled at this of anyone.

This conversation explores what happens when personal growth stops living in your head and finally takes root in your body — through the Angelova Method, a six-month experience blending intentional movement, mindset recalibration, and nervous system regulation into something that actually creates lasting change.

Learn more: rebelliousstudio.com/the-mind-body-podcast

ConciergeMedicineToday.com · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most genetic tests give women insight into less than 0.1% of their DNA. Sequencing.com gives them access to nearly all of it — and true. Women's Health in Grand Rapids is now integrating that data directly into personalized care plans for women navigating perimenopause, menopause, and long-term metabolic health.

This is what precision medicine looks like when it actually reaches the patient.

Learn more: truewomenshealth.com/sequencing · sequencing.com

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.org/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com
👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

In this episode of The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast, we unpack a recent article written by a clinician—one that suggested physicians already possess everything needed to run a successful practice. While the heart of that message is encouraging, the realities of leading a practice today are far more complex than discipline and vision alone.

This conversation explores what the article gets right, what it unintentionally leaves out, and why blending clinical excellence with business clarity is essential in a changing healthcare landscape. We discuss how practice ownership demands a different kind of leadership—one built on messaging, systems, sustainability, and support. And we highlight why advisors, business-minded peers, and outside perspectives bring a level of clarity and structure that empowers clinicians rather than diminishes their independence.

Most importantly, we talk about what clinicians can learn from the broader world of business—how clarity reduces friction, how consistency builds trust, and how the right support can turn hard work into lasting momentum.

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com
👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views are the speaker's own. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

✅ The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Dr. Julie Chen has spent her career at the intersection of precision medicine, longevity science, and the future of how we actually stay well — and her perspective on where healthcare is headed is unlike anyone else in this space.

As Chief Medical Officer at Radence and former CMO at Human Longevity and Vitagene, Dr. Chen brings FDA, NIH, and National Cancer Institute research experience into a conversation about what personalized medicine looks like when it's done right — and what most patients and physicians are still missing.

Learn more about Radence: radence.com

🌐 www.ConciergeMedicineToday.com
👥 www.instagram.com/conciergemedicineforum/

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views are the speaker's own. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

✅ The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

If your practice can't run without you, you don't own a practice — you own a job. This episode is about changing that.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp 

The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Before you rush into what's next, this episode is permission to pause — and ask whether the pace you're keeping is actually working for you.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp 

The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most Americans think of their HSA as a break-glass emergency fund. Concierge physicians know it can be something entirely different — and that gap in understanding is your biggest sales problem and your biggest opportunity.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp 

The DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

The physicians who will thrive in the next decade of medicine aren't the most burned out or the most cynical. They're the ones who stayed curious enough to ask better questions.

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

We've all sat through that talk. If we're honest, some of us have given it — the one where the slides are too dense, the energy is too flat, and the audience is doing everything except listening.

In this solo episode, Michael Tetreault breaks down 12 practical things any physician can do to become a more compelling, memorable presenter — whether you're speaking at a CME event, a conference, or pitching your practice to a room full of potential patients.

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

The rules of digital visibility just changed — and most concierge practices are still playing by the old ones.

Steven Schwartz, founder of Concierge Medical Marketing and a 25-year digital marketing veteran, breaks down what Answer Engine Optimization means for physician practices, why high-net-worth patients find their doctors differently than they did five years ago, and what it actually takes to show up as the answer in an AI-driven search world.

Learn more: conciergemd.marketing

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Every time a physician decides that strategy, sustainability, and leadership are someone else's problem, a patient eventually pays the price for that decision.

In this solo episode, Michael Tetreault makes the case that clinical excellence and business clarity aren't in tension — they're inseparable. A practice that isn't financially sustainable, strategically led, or operationally sound doesn't just fail the physician. It fails the patients who depend on it.

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most patients with complex diagnoses don't need more information — they need the right physician, with the right expertise, taking the time to actually explain what's happening and what comes next.

Dr. Mark Halsted built MD For Patients to do exactly that — offering comprehensive, honest consultations tailored to patients facing serious diagnoses, anywhere in the world, virtually. This is what patient advocacy looks like when a physician decides to put it first.

Learn more: mdforpatients.com/aboutus

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most physicians spend decades building their practice and weeks preparing to sell it — and that gap almost always costs them significantly when it's time to exit.

Justin Outslay, Founder of Cinnamon Hill Partners, works with physician practice owners to understand what their practice is actually worth, what buyers are looking for, and how to position for a transaction before someone else decides the terms for you.

Learn more: cinnamon-hill.com

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Most physicians can diagnose a complex patient in minutes but struggle to read their own profit and loss statement — and that gap quietly limits everything they're trying to build.

Katie Rhodes, owner of Coal Creek Ledgers, works exclusively with business owners like physicians to cut through the financial noise, get clear on the numbers, and make confident decisions. This episode is about stepping into your role as a strategic leader — not just an operator.

Learn more: consult.coalcreekledgers.com

ConciergeMedicineToday.net · Apple Podcasts · Spotify

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

Patients don't just remember what you did for them medically — they remember how your practice made them feel, and that feeling is now the single most powerful driver of growth in self-pay and concierge medicine.

How to 10X Your Practice with Shareef Mahdavi - learn more at: https://pxmovement.com/px90-program/

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DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

If you've been wondering whether the Concierge Medicine Forum is worth your time this year, this episode answers the questions physicians ask most before deciding to attend.

Learn more at www.ConciergeMedicineForum.com 

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DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

Medicare is moving toward connected, ongoing care models with one hand — and tightening compliance enforcement around concierge-style practices with the other. Attorney Jim Eischen breaks down what that means for your practice right now.

Unlike CCM, which has seen slower traction, RPM adoption has been swift and widespread. The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has expressed concerns in recent reports, but this very scrutiny highlights the scale of adoption and the significant investment in ongoing monitoring that the U.S. healthcare system has never truly embraced before.

📑 Source: OIG RPM Report, 2025 (View: https://oig.hhs.gov/reports/all/2025/billing-for-remote-patient-monitoring/) 

In addition, the April 2025 OIG report marked the fourth prosecution in U.S. history related to cash-based healthcare models. This case provides perhaps the clearest signal yet from OIG that traditional concierge-style marketing—emphasizing same- or next-day access, extended visits, care coordination, and direct physician communication—is not compliant with Medicare assignment rules unless it is paired with proper, routine exam structuring.

FOR ADDITIONAL REFERENCE and LEARNING, here is the 4th OIG alert in US history: 

https://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/enforcement/greenfield-health-system-agreed-to-pay-286000-for-allegedly-violating-the-civil-monetary-penalties-law-by-requesting-payment-from-beneficiaries-in-violation-of-an-assignment-agreement/

About Our Guest

James Eischen, Esq (Jim Eischen) is a licensed California attorney with over 32 years of experience handling complex corporate, business planning, and real estate matters. He received his J.D. from the University of California at Davis in 1987, and his B.A. from Creighton University in 1984.

Mr. Eischen is recognized nationally for compliance experience regarding complex corporate business planning and transactions. As a speaker at conferences throughout the US, he addresses data privacy, regulatory business planning problem-solving, and start-up innovation monetization.

Mr. Eischen's broad complex business planning experience includes life science/start-up enterprise regulatory support and structuring corporate practice of medicine business modeling. He advises business enterprises in matters connected to reimbursement, contracts, interdisciplinary employment and labor issues, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance.

LEARN MORE www.eischenlawoffice.com

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DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

Disclaimers: THIS SITE AND ANY OTHER CMT MANAGED OR OWNED WEB PROPERTY by Concierge Medicine Today, LLC (herein CMT) DOES NOT OFFER MEDICAL, FINANCIAL, LEGAL, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL ADVICE. ERRORS OR OMISSIONS MAY OCCUR ON THIS SITE. The content is primarily designed for general informational purposes, targeting a healthcare professional audience. Any references, links, or interviews should not be construed as endorsements. CMT is not responsible for errors, omissions, statements, conduct, or claims related to guest posts, op-eds, podcasts, press releases, sponsored job listings, or advertised opportunities. Typically, CMT will strive to remove job listings that are older than four months, but this is not guaranteed. Always consult with reliable advisors before acting on the information you find here. By using our web properties, content, events, etc., in whole or in part, you agree to comply with the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy found here, releasing Concierge Medicine Today, LLC (CMT) from all liability. Additional terms may be applicable. CMT retains the right to remove any content, images, interviews, graphics, job listings, and similar materials at its discretion at any time, without notice and without liability. Thank you.

Today we unpack some of healthcare's succession and retirement trends Doctors should know about when considering hiring, replacing and leaving medicine better than how it found you!

Craig Fowler, Founder & President of the Athenic Group, which helps Hospitals, Medical Practice Owners, UCs, Nurses, PAs, Doctors and others solve their healthcare recruiting challenges through dedicated Physician Search and the training and development of your recruiting the right medical staff to fit in well in your practice environment and remain committed for years to come.

• LISTEN TO FULL PODCAST EPISODE

Craig is a 20+ year veteran of the physician recruiting industry; including holding senior leadership roles with several of the largest retained physician recruiting firms in the country. He is a former President of the National Association of Physician Recruiters (NAPR) and is a sought after speaker and trainer on physician recruitment processes and trends.

He has also received accolades from respected healthcare organizations and associations such as: TEAMHealth, Tenet Healthcare, Piedmont Healthcare, Memorial Hermann Hospital, UT Chattanooga, Medical College of Georgia, Physician Hospitals of America, American Academy of Private Physicians, Concierge Medicine Today Forum. Some of his media credits include: NBC News, New England Journal of Medicine, Becker's Healthcare, Neurology Today, MGMA, NAMPC, Concierge Medicine Today, NAPR, and AAPPR (formerly ASPR).

ATHENIC GROUP

220 N Jeff Davis Dr, Ste 4

Fayetteville, GA 30214

Office: 404-580-3443

cfowler@athenicgroup.com

Recruitment Services

Our recruitment services division functions as a boutique search firm specializing in physician and provider recruitment. We use the same resources large retained firms' use, but we take a more tailored and personal approach. Training & Development Our training and development division offers a range of services to help improve your recruitment team's performance, therefore decreasing your need for outsourced recruitment. Services range from skills evaluation, rookie recruiter training, team development, training workshops and ongoing coaching.

Complementary Services

Our primary focus is to help your practice, facility and community by improving the lives of those who seek healthcare from you. Other complementary services that we offer include: Expert Marketing Services, Succession Planning/Consulting for the Concierge and Direct Primary Care Practice, Expert Witness Testimony Services, and Search Evaluation & Consultation Services.

www.AthenicGroup.com

© Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. ("CMT") All rights reserved.

Disclaimers: This content is for educational purposes only and does not provide medical, financial, legal, or professional advice. Concierge Medicine Today, LLC (CMT) is not liable for errors from guest contributions. Users should consult reliable advisors before making decisions. By using this content, you agree to CMT's Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, releasing CMT from liability. CMT may remove content without notice, and guest interviews do not imply endorsement. Users assume all related risks. Thank you.

Most physicians have never had anyone explain how their practice is actually valued — and that gap costs them significantly when it's time to sell, transition, or plan for retirement.

Guest Presenter: Chris Staples, CFP®, AIF®, Owner of Wealth 360, LLC, Buford, Georgia, United States

Host: Michael Tetreault, CGSP®

Learn More: https://wealth360advisors.com/

Recording Date: 2020

(C) Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. All rights reserved.

About

Chris Staples is the Principal owner of Wealth 360, LLC.; a fee-only Registered Investment Advisory firm located in the greater Atlanta Area. Wealth 360, LLC provides comprehensive and objective financial planning to help clients organize, grow, and protect their assets through life's transitions.

As a fee-only fiduciary and independent financial advisor, Chris Staples is never paid a commission of any kind, and has a legal obligation to provide unbiased and trustworthy financial advice. Chris typically works with professionals, business owners, and those near and in retirement helping to develop long-term Financial Planning strategies.

Chris holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation under the Certified Financial Planning Board of Standards as well as an Accredited Investment Fiduciary® designation through Fi360. He holds a business degree from Indiana Wesleyan University and earned the Certificate of Financial Planning from Oglethorpe University.

Chris served as President of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors North-Metro Atlanta Chapter [2004-2005]. From 2010-2012 Chris served on the Board of Directors with the Financial Planning Association as the ProBono Chair.

WEB SITE: https://wealth360advisors.com/

LEARN MORE, Connect With Chris directly at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stapleschris/

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DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

If you're building — or seriously considering — a membership-based practice, you don't have to figure this out in isolation.

Explore leadership insights, operational frameworks, and real-world case studies:

• Concierge Medicine Today Leadership Hub & Knowledge Center
• Submit a question, article, or perspective
• Join us at the industry's annual conference in Atlanta every October — where physicians, operators, and innovators come together to build better systems, not just better ideas.

This content is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered medical, legal, financial, or professional advice.

By  Dana Jacoby and Gary Herschman[1]

Over the last several years there has been a growing trend of consolidation and partnership transactions involving concierge medicine practices.[2]

• Download this article as a PDF
• LISTEN TO OUR EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW (Podcast)

The purpose of this article is both: (A) to educate concierge medicine physicians on why concierge medicine practices have been transacting with increasing frequency; and (B) to provide practical recommendations for owners of concierge medicine practices who are exploring the possibility of entering into such a transaction.

We hope that these practical recommendations are helpful both: (i) if you decide to explore the universe of potential strategic options that may be available for your practice, and (ii) in the event that you decide to pursue a partnership transaction to achieve your long-term professional and financial goals and for your practice's long-term success.

Citations and References

• [1] Dana Jacoby is the Founder and President/CEO of Vector Medical Group, a strategic healthcare consulting firm that advises concierge medicine practices across the country on improving operations and profitability, and the pros and cons of various strategic transactions.  Dana's email is: djacoby@vectormedicalgroup.com. Gary Herschman, Esq. has been advising physicians on strategic positioning and major transactions for over 30 years and is the Co-Chair of the Health Care Transactions Group at the national healthcare firm of Baker Donelson.  He represents many concierge medicine groups on growth strategies and strategic partnership and sale transactions.  Gary's email is:  gherschman@bakerdonelson.com
• [2] Concierge Medicine Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, 2020-2030F
• [3] Hospitals cash in on a private equity-backed trend: Concierge physician care - ABC News

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DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

###

DocPreneur Leadership Podcast is produced by Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) — the industry's independent trade publication since 2007. Host of the annual Concierge Medicine Forum.

🌐 ConciergeMedicineToday.com

For general informational purposes only. Not medical, legal, or financial advice. Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. Full terms: conciergemedicinetoday.com/tcpp

By William G. (Bill) Stuart | July 3, 2025

The Senate finished its version of the reconciliation bill and sent it to the next step in the legislative process. Which Health Savings Account provisions survived the upper chamber?

The Senate has been busy for nearly a month since the House of Representatives sent a reconciliation bill to the upper chamber for review. A reconciliation bill is particularly important because it can pass the Senate with 51 (of 100 or 101) votes. In contrast, all other bills must have a 60-vote majority if the minority demands that standard.

RELATED INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE AND INSIGHTS
October 16-18, 2025 Industry's Annual Conference

The House bill contained 10 provisions to expand or enhance Health Savings Accounts. Of the 10, only two survived the final Senate vote of 51-50 earlier this week. In addition, the Senate added a topic that was not addressed by the House. Here are the Health Savings Account provisions in the Senate-approved bill:

READ FULL ARTICLE ON LINKEDIN ...

SOURCE: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-senates-proposed-reconciliation-bill-hsa-affect-consumers-stuart-qwsfe/

Disclaimers: THIS SITE AND ANY OTHER CMT MANAGED OR OWNED WEB PROPERTY by Concierge Medicine Today, LLC (herein CMT) DOES NOT OFFER MEDICAL, FINANCIAL, LEGAL, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL ADVICE. ERRORS OR OMISSIONS MAY OCCUR ON THIS SITE. The content is primarily designed for general informational purposes, targeting a healthcare professional audience. Any references, links, or interviews should not be construed as endorsements. CMT is not responsible for errors, omissions, statements, conduct, or claims related to guest posts, op-eds, podcasts, press releases, sponsored job listings, or advertised opportunities. Typically, CMT will strive to remove job listings that are older than four months, but this is not guaranteed. Always consult with reliable advisors before acting on the information you find here. By using our web properties, content, events, etc., in whole or in part, you agree to comply with the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy found here, releasing Concierge Medicine Today, LLC (CMT) from all liability. Additional terms may be applicable. CMT retains the right to remove any content, images, interviews, graphics, job listings, and similar materials at its discretion at any time, without notice and without liability. Thank you.