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111 Elm St STE 201, Worcester, MA 01609
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Dr. Tatiana Hamawi
Dr. Hamawi: Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, with 20 years of private practice experience in Worcester, MA. Now offering Direct Primary Care, prioritizing patient needs over insurance requirements. Join us for personalized, accessible, and empathetic care.
Frequently asked questions
Why Direct Primary Care?
When you visit a medical practice run by a hospital, corporation, or large group, the focus is often on your insurance plan—not you. At Alpha-Omega Direct Primary Care, we do things differently. We don’t involve ourselves with insurance, so our attention stays on what matters most: your health. With same- or next-business-day appointments, unhurried visits, and direct access to your doctor between appointments, your care is truly personal. We focus on building a relationship with you, ensuring your concerns are heard, your needs are met, and you never feel lost in the system.
What Exactly Is Direct Primary Care?
Direct Primary Care (DPC) is a healthcare model where patients pay a flat monthly fee to become members of a DPC practice. This model facilitates a direct financial relationship between patients and their doctors, bypassing insurance and enabling more personalized care. In DPC, doctors provide a range of medical services including preventive, wellness, and chronic disease management.
Watch these: explainer video 1 and explainer video 2.
Read Dr. Hamawi's article about it on pg. 22 of the Chamber Exchange Newspaper Nov. 2023 Edition.
Can Direct Primary Care save me money?
Direct Primary Care (DPC) providers offer a cost-effective alternative to traditional healthcare models. Here's how hiring us as your DPC provider can save you money:
1. No additional out-of-pocket costs
2. Reduced time away from work
3. Reduced costs for labs and imaging
4. Lower pharmacy costs
5. Fewer specialist visits
6. Less likely to spend your entire deductible
By using our service, instead of going through insurance, you can keep your out-of-pocket costs low and avoid surprise billing. Read our blog for a more detailed explanation of the above 6 advantages.
Check out this video on my FB page to see how DPC can shave off expenses from your deductible.
Listen to Dr. Chad Savage explain the fallacy of insurance and how you can save money with a DPC membership.
What is the difference between Direct Primary Care and Concierge Medicine?
Direct Primary Care (DPC) and concierge medicine are both membership-based healthcare models that prioritize personalized care and better access to physicians, but they differ in key ways. DPC typically charges an affordable monthly fee covering most primary care services without relying on insurance, while concierge medicine often involves very high fees and additional charges for services billed through insurance. DPC focuses on accessibility and simplicity, with transparent pricing and smaller patient panels to enhance care. In contrast, concierge medicine caters more to luxury services and higher-income patients and retains most of the problems associated with billing insurance. At Alpha-Omega Direct Primary Care, LLC, we embrace the DPC model to provide personalized, affordable, and hassle-free healthcare for everyone.
Do I still need to have health insurance?
Insurance is not required, but it is highly recommended that you maintain health insurance even if you are a member of Alpha-Omega Direct Primary Care, LLC. We are not an insurance plan. Our practice provides comprehensive primary care services. Health insurance is important for covering medical needs outside the scope of primary care. These include:
Emergency care: Accidents or unexpected health emergencies may require hospitalization or specialist care.
Specialist consultations or advanced testing: While we assist with finding you the right specialist, our membership fee does not cover the cost of seeing specialists or obtaining advanced imaging or procedures.
Prescription medications: Our premium membership offers access to 300 discounted medications. Having insurance may help cover more expensive or specialty drugs that would otherwise be out of reach.
Surgical procedures or chronic disease management programs: Insurance can offset the high costs associated with these services.
Think of your DPC membership as an affordable way to get personalized, high-quality primary care while your health insurance acts as a safety net for major or unforeseen medical expenses. Many members choose high-deductible health plans or health-sharing programs to pair with their DPC membership.
Low-cost Health Insurance and Heath-Share Plans in Massachusetts that are compatible with Direct Primary Care, in approximate order of cost:
1. Tufts Health Together
2. Tufts Health Direct
3. Wellsense Mass Health Plans
4. Wellsense Clarity plans
5. Other Mass Health Managed care plans - if they do not require referrals for specialists.
6. HSA Direct - A health-share plan. It does not meet MA minimum requirements, so you may incur a tax penalty. Do the math and see if it still makes sense for you.
7. HSA Secure - A health-share plan. It meets MA minimum requirements. No tax penalty. This is a great option for the self-employed. Dr. Hamawi has this plan herself.
Other plans compatible with Direct Primary Care:
1. Medicare Part B
2. Medicare Part C plans that don't require insurance referrals.
3. Tricare
4. Wellpoint - A State and Municipal employee insurance plan.
5. Commercial plans (BCBS, United, Cigna, Aetna, etc.) that do not require insurance referrals.
6. Student health insurance plans that do not require referrals.
7. Any other plan that suits your needs and does not require a referral.
What insurance plans are not compatible with Direct Primary Care?
Please note that it’s important to have an insurance plan that does not require referrals (i.e. permission from an in-network PCP) to see a specialist. Our practice is unable to issue insurance-based referrals because we are out of network for all insurance plans.
We are not accepting new (unmanaged) Mass Health Standard, Family Assistance, Care Plus or Children's Health Security patients at this time. (This is not the same as the above listed Mass-Health managed plans.)
We’re happy to help you navigate these options and clarify how a membership with us would complement your insurance plan!