What members-only medical practices can offer in the age of Covid.
“In this climate, there’s the strong sense that who your GP is matters a lot more than it ever has before.”
The following written content by April Long
At the height of the pandemic in New York City, concierge medicine providers were fielding phone calls left and right from clients eager to get tested, stat. Doctors were asked to zip out to the Hamptons to deliver quick turnaround tests before dinner parties, others to fast-track tests for C-suite executives and tech titans eager to get back to business as usual. Overall, concierge practices—membership to which typically runs in the neighborhood of $10,000 a year—got a lot busier. Enrollment surged, and not just among the ultra-rich. There were also those who weighed the cost/benefit of not having to stand in line at City MD, and who wanted to feel secure that if they did catch the virus, they could be treated immediately by the best doctors available—then made the adjustments necessary to pay.
“The pandemic has reinforced that, for all of the amazing and committed medical professionals pouring their hearts into their work, the healthcare system is an impersonal, bureaucratic behemoth,” says Ben Kruger, the co-founder of Sollis Health, a concierge service with medical centers in New York and, as of October, Beverly Hills. “Traditional institutions just aren’t nimble enough to provide personalized and efficient care—especially during a crisis—and now people are actively searching for alternatives.”
Actress Frida Pinto, a Sollis Health member, says she was initially drawn to the idea merely as an efficient way of self-monitoring. “All my friends know that I am completely obsessed with my health. And not as a hypochondriac, but just as someone who is very interested in studying and learning about her body and the importance of good health,” she says. “When I looked into joining Sollis, I liked that I had the option to speak to a doctor 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, if and when the need arose.” As a famous face, the privacy factor helped too. “I like the fact that concierge medicine is so private,” she says. “That gives me a sense of peace, especially in a profession where there is constant media and public curiosity.” Read more from Town & Country
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