oasis-healthcare

What Is Direct Primary Care, and How Is It Different From Insurance?

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 07:43:53 GMT

How do you get primary care when your insurance makes every visit feel like a guess? One answer is direct primary care. At Oasis Healthcare in Grafton, Wisconsin, direct primary care is one of three ways in, alongside commercial insurance and self-pay.

This guide covers what direct primary care is, how it differs from health insurance, and who it tends to fit. It also covers our Oasis Healthcare membership pricing in Grafton and a 2026 federal rule on using an HSA for direct primary ca re.

What Is Direct Primary Care?

Direct primary care, often shortened to DPC, is a membership model for primary care. You pay the clinic one fixed monthly fee. That fee covers your everyday primary care, so there's no insurance claim for each visit.

Primary care is the care you use most. It includes sick visits, check-ups, managing an ongoing condition, and questions about your health.

Because the rate is published, you know the cost before you walk in. There's no bill weeks later. You don't have to check whether you've met your deductible first.

How Direct Primary Care Differs From Health Insurance

Health insurance and direct primary care do two different jobs.

Insurance protects you from large, unpredictable costs. It spreads risk across many people and pays for covered services under your plan's rules. Most plans ask you to pay a deductible first. After that, you usually pay a copay or a share of each bill.

That structure works well for a hospital stay or surgery. It can make a routine sick visit hard to price ahead of time.

Direct primary care covers everyday care at a set monthly price. There's no claim, no deductible, and no copay for the care your membership includes. It does not pay for hospital stays, emergency room visits, surgery, or outside specialists.

Here's how the two compare side by side.

What you pay . With insurance, you pay a monthly premium, plus your deductible, copays, and coinsurance. With direct primary care, you pay one flat monthly fee to the clinic.

What it's built for. Insurance is built for large and unexpected medical costs. Direct primary care is built for everyday primary care.

How a visit is paid. With insurance, the clinic bills your plan, and you pay your share. With direct primary care, your membership fee covers included care.

Hospital and emergency care. Insurance covers these under your plan's terms. Direct primary care does not cover them.

Knowing the cost ahead of time. With insurance, it depends on your plan and your deductible. With direct primary care, you know the cost, because the rate is published.

Direct Primary Care Works Alongside Your Insurance

Most patients pair a membership with health insurance. Keep your insurance for the big things, like hospital stays and specialist care. Use your membership for everyday care here in Grafton.

That pairing is common with a high-deductible health plan. On those plans, you often pay full price for routine visits until you reach the deductible. HealthCare.gov explains how a high-deductible health plan works if you want the details. A flat membership turns those routine visits into one predictable monthly cost.

Some patients have no insurance at all. For them, a membership gives steady access to primary care at a known price. We still suggest talking with a licensed insurance agent about coverage for emergencies and hospital care.

Who Direct Primary Care Tends to Fit

Direct primary care fits some situations especially well.

High-deductible plan holders. You keep your plan for major costs and use the membership for everyday visits.
Small business owners. You know your rent and payroll to the dollar. A flat membership gives your healthcare costs the same predictability.
People without insurance. Early in a career or between jobs, a membership keeps you connected to primary care.
People retiring before 65. Medicare starts at 65. If you leave employer coverage earlier, a membership can cover your primary care in the gap.
Families. One family rate covers everyday care for everyone in the household.

How the Oasis Healthcare Membership Works

Our membership option has one flat, published rate, billed monthly. You can also pay annually.

$99 per month for an individual
$249 per month for a family, as a maximum
$149 per month for specialty care, which includes weight loss care, specialist care, and patients 65 and older

Oasis Healthcare is clinician-owned, and our nurse practitioners manage your care. Our care runs from illness to wellness, for patients from childhood through adulthood.

Membership is one route. You can also use commercial insurance, or pay a flat self-pay rate per visit. Whatever your coverage, there's a way in. Compare every payment option at Oasis Healthcare to see which one fits you.

Can You Use an HSA for Direct Primary Care?

Starting January 1, 2026, the answer can be yes. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed in July 2025, changed how health savings accounts treat direct primary care. Before that, joining a DPC practice could stop you from contributing to an HSA.

Here is what changed, according to the IRS guidance on HSAs and direct primary care :

A qualifying direct primary care arrangement no longer blocks HSA contributions.
You can pay qualifying membership fees with HSA funds.
The fee limit is $150 a month for one person and $300 a month for an arrangement covering more than one person.
The arrangement must cover primary care only, for one fixed fee. Prescription drugs other than vaccines, procedures that need general anesthesia, and some lab services fall outside that definition.

These rules are new, and the IRS is still refining them. Your HSA administrator can confirm how they apply to your account. If you have questions about eligibility or pricing, reach out to our team at (262) 421-8961.

Questions to Ask Before You Join Any Membership

A good clinic answers these clearly before you sign up.

What does the monthly fee include, and what costs extra?
How do I book a visit, and how soon can I be seen?
Can I keep my insurance for hospital and specialist care?
Is there a minimum commitment or a fee to cancel?
Can I pay with my HSA?

Insurance, Self-Pay, or Membership: There's a Way In

Healthcare can feel confusing, and the cost question often keeps people from booking at all. At Oasis Healthcare, every route is welcome. Commercial insurance, self-pay, and membership all get you in the door.

Not sure which one fits? We're here for you. Book a visit with Oasis Healthcare in Grafton , or call (262) 421-8961, and we'll walk you through your options.

DPC Membership for Small Business Owners: A Benefit Your Team Can Use

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 07:42:24 GMT

Most small business owners can tell you their rent and payroll to the dollar. Healthcare costs for a team are harder to pin down. At Oasis Healthcare in Grafton, Wisconsin, a DPC membership gives employers one flat monthly price for everyday care, a benefit you can offer your team and plan around.

This guide is written for owners. It covers why employers offer a membership, how it fits with the benefits you have now, what it costs for a team at our published membership rates in Grafton , and how to introduce it to your employees.

Why Small Business Owners Offer a DPC Membership to Their Team

A DPC membership pays for everyday primary care with one fixed monthly fee per person. For an employer, that structure solves a few specific problems.

A benefit you can budget. You pay a known amount for each person each month. The cost doesn't change with how often your employees come in.
A benefit your team can use right away. Employees don't need to meet a deductible before the membership covers their everyday care. A sick visit in the first week counts the same as one in the eleventh month.
A benefit that fits what you already offer. A membership works with a group plan, with a high-deductible plan, or with no plan at all. You don't have to rebuild your benefits to add it.
A benefit that's easy to explain. One clinic, one monthly rate, everyday care included. Employees understand it the first time they hear it.

How a DPC Membership Fits Your Current Benefits

How a membership fits depends on what you offer your team today.

If you already offer a group health plan. A membership sits alongside it. Your plan stays in place for hospital stays, specialists, and other major costs. The membership covers everyday primary care at a set price.

If you offer a high-deductible plan. On those plans, employees often pay full price for routine visits until they reach the deductible. HealthCare.gov explains how a high-deductible health plan works if you want the details. A membership turns those visits into one predictable monthly cost for the business.

If you don't offer health insurance yet. A membership gives your team steady access to primary care at a known price. It does not replace insurance for emergencies or hospital care. HealthCare.gov lists health coverage options for small businesses that you can weigh alongside it.

Talk with your benefits advisor about how a membership fits your overall benefits package.

Budgeting a Membership for Your Team

Our published rates are $99 a month for an individual, $249 a month as a family maximum, and $149 a month for specialty care. Memberships are billed monthly and can also be paid annually.

Here's what that looks like for a few common team sizes at the individual rate.

Three employees. $297 a month, or $3,564 a year.

Five employees. $495 a month, or $5,940 a year.

Ten employees. $990 a month, or $11,880 a year.

An owner's family plus four employees. $249 for the owner's family and $396 for the employees, or $645 a month.

Those numbers stay the same whether your team comes in once a month or several times. That's the point of a flat rate.

If you have questions about employer options or pricing, reach out to our team at (262) 421-8961.

Decisions to Make Before You Offer It

Before you announce a membership, settle a few choices on your side.

Who's eligible. Decide whether the benefit covers full-time employees only, or part-time staff too.
When it starts. Decide whether new hires get it on day one or after a set period.
How much the business pays. Decide whether the business covers the full membership or a share of it.
Whether families can join. Decide whether employees can add their families at the family rate.

Your benefits advisor can help you put those choices in writing. Our team can walk you through how billing works for the setup you choose.

How to Introduce the Membership to Your Employees

A benefit only helps if people use it. A short, clear explanation goes a long way.

Tell them what it covers. Everyday primary care at Oasis Healthcare, including sick visits, check-ups, and care for ongoing conditions. Our nurse practitioners manage that care for patients from childhood through adulthood.

Tell them what stays with insurance . Hospital stays, emergency room visits, surgery, and outside specialists are not part of the membership.

Tell them how to book. Employees can book a visit with Oasis Healthcare online or call (262) 421-8961.

Tell them who to ask. Point questions about the benefit itself to you or your office manager. Point questions about care to us.

Your Own Care Counts Too

Many owners take care of everyone else's benefits and put their own care last. A membership covers you on the same terms as your team. If your family and your business overlap, the family rate covers your household at one capped price.

Questions to Ask Before You Add a Membership to Your Benefits

A good clinic answers these clearly before your business signs up.

How does billing work when the business pays for employee memberships?
Can employees add their families, and who pays for that?
What happens to a membership when an employee leaves?
Is there a minimum number of employees, or a minimum commitment?
How quickly can a new employee start using the membership?

Built by a Small Business, for Small Businesses

We're a small, clinician-owned business here in Grafton too, so we get it. You need costs you can plan around, and a team that can get care without the stress.

Oasis Healthcare also accepts commercial insurance and flat self-pay rates, so every employee has a way in. If you're ready to talk through employer options, we're here for you. Call (262) 421-8961, or compare every payment option at Oasis Healthcare before you reach out.

Written by Oasis Healthcare Providers