According to a report in USA Today, four states have laws that specifically allow for retainer physician practices, Oregon being the most recent to enact one. In addition, Utah, West Virginia and Washington require retainer physicians to register with the state but exempt those practices from insurance regulations.
Nearly 20 other states have retainer physicians operating practices, but those states do not have a law on the books that addresses that type of practice. Most retainer practices are geared toward patients with high-deductibles, catastrophic insurance or no insurance plan at all.
But experts say people who decide to receive care from a retainer physician need to be careful and exercise strong judgment.
“I think the issue is for patients to really understand what they’re getting,” says Alwyn Cassil of the Washington D.C.-based Center for Studying Health System Change. “They’re getting doctor visits and some minimum level of diagnostic services. But if they get really sick, they better have insurance, or they’re going to be bankrupt. This is not insurance in any way, shape or form.”
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