Practice Fee
What is the “practice fee?”
A practice fee is an annual fee charged to patients who wish to join the practice. Its purpose is to cover physician's expenses not covered by insurance. It gives you and me the flexibility to orient your care around you rather than your insurance company.
What other benefits are afforded by payment of a practice fee?
- same or next business day access when appropriate
- 24/7 access to Dr. Unverzagt (or another physician who covers the practice when he is out of town)
- accessibility and flexibility in providing care
- comprehensive wellness services
- in-depth dietary and exercise advice for chronic disease management
- international travel advice
- specialty care coordination
- home and/or office visits when indicated
In short, the practice fee allows me to keep my practice small. Keeping my practice small does two things. One, a small practice is much easier to access and practice fee patients can expect same or next (business) day service when appropriate. Second, I can provide a more flexible delivery system than that dictated by the insurance companies allowing me to save you visits by using email and the telephone when it is medically appropriate.
There are two ways to pay the bills in medicine today. See as much volume as you can in a day while paying other people to do most of the work. Or, give patients a high quality relationship-based experience. The practice fee supports the quality-based model as opposed to the volume/quantity-based model.
How do I pay
- Calculate practice fee payment amount using tables following How much is the practice fee?.
- Pay practice fee, either by mail or online.
- If you have agreed to donate to the Undaunted Carnival Foundation as part of your practice fee, you may now use the button below to complete that donation through another, separate and secure PayPal page.
Make donation to Undaunted Carnival (if applicable)
How much is the practice fee?
The practice fee is determined by income and the patient's ability to pay. But the highest annual cost for an individual is approximately the cost of subscribing to basic cable TV service for a year. There is a discounted rate for families, and families are defined fairly broadly. The national average for practice fees is $2000 per person per year. My rates are…
Practice Fee Chart Without a Donation to Undaunted Carnival Foundation
|
effective January 1, 2009 based on
2008 Income for Residents of New Mexico |
||
| Household | income of less than $35,000 | income of $35,000 or more |
| Individual | $270.00* | $535.00* |
| * includes New Mexico Gross Receipts Tax of 6.75% | ||
| effective January 1, 2009 based on 2008 Income for Residents of New Mexico |
||
| Household | income of less than $50,000 | income of $50,000 or more |
| Couple | $400.00* | $800.00* |
| Family | $430.00* | $855.00* |
| * includes New Mexico Gross Receipts Tax of 6.75% | ||
If you are paying the full practice fee (individuals making $35,000 or more or couples and families making $50,000 or more) you have the option of donating 10% of the practice fees to my foundation, The Undaunted Carnival Foundation. These contributions are tax deductible.
Practice Fee Chart With a Donation to Undaunted Carnival Foundation
| effective January 1, 2009 based on 2008 All Incomes for Residents of New Mexico |
||
| Household | Payment | Donation |
| Individual | $480.00* | $50‡ |
| Couple | $720.00* | $75‡ |
| Family | $770.00* | $80‡ |
| * includes New Mexico Gross Receipts Tax of 6.75%; ‡ tax deductable | ||
A separate payment of 10% of the total fee before the deduction needs to be paid in addition to the above payment. Check or credit card are accepted and you will receive a receipt for your tax records once the donation is paid.
Payment must be made at the time of service.
Do I have to pay the practice fee to be a patient in Dr. Unverzagt's practice?
If you wish to become a new patient, the answer is yes. I am only accepting new patients who are willing to pay the practice fee.