How can a small business offer direct primary care?

Providing employees with better access to primary care does not necessarily require a traditional group health insurance plan.

Direct primary care, or DPC, gives employers another option.

A small business can help provide employees with access to a primary care physician by paying for some or all of an employee's DPC membership. Employees then use the practice for the primary care services included in that membership.

For a small business, the model can be relatively straightforward: a predictable membership cost provides eligible employees with ongoing access to a local primary care practice.

What is direct primary care?

Direct primary care is a membership-based model of primary care.

Instead of billing health insurance for routine primary care services, the patient or employer pays a recurring membership fee directly to the practice.

The membership supports the primary care services included by that practice.

At Firebird Direct Primary Care, that means an ongoing relationship with a family physician rather than paying separately for each routine office visit.

You can learn more about how direct primary care works.

What can employees use DPC for?

Primary care covers a broad range of everyday healthcare needs.

Depending on the situation, employees may use Firebird DPC for:

Employees also have ways to communicate with the practice between office visits, including phone, text, secure messaging, and telehealth when clinically appropriate.

See more of the primary care services available at Firebird DPC.

Why might DPC interest a small business?

Small employers often face a practical problem when thinking about employee healthcare benefits.

They want employees to have access to medical care, but traditional benefit options can be complicated and expensive.

DPC offers a different approach specifically for primary care.

Instead of trying to replace every part of the healthcare system, the employer can provide access to a local primary care physician through a defined membership arrangement.

For some businesses, the simplicity and predictability of that structure may be attractive.

Does an employer have to pay the entire membership?

Not necessarily.

The appropriate arrangement depends on the employer and how the benefit is structured.

Possible approaches may include:

Employers should review the tax and employee-benefit implications of a particular arrangement with their benefits, accounting, or legal advisers.

Firebird DPC can explain the primary care membership itself and discuss practical enrollment options with the employer.

Is DPC health insurance?

No.

This is one of the most important things for both employers and employees to understand.

Direct primary care provides access to primary care. It is not comprehensive health insurance.

Hospital care, emergency services, surgery, specialty care, advanced imaging, and other medical expenses occur outside the DPC practice.

An employer considering DPC should therefore think about the membership in the context of the company's broader benefits strategy rather than assuming it replaces medical coverage.

What about HSA eligibility?

Federal rules affecting direct primary care and Health Savings Accounts have changed.

Beginning in 2026, federal law allows an otherwise eligible individual participating in certain qualifying direct primary care arrangements to remain eligible to contribute to an HSA, subject to applicable federal requirements and DPC fee limits.

The tax treatment of a particular employee benefit arrangement can depend on how it is structured.

Employers and employees should confirm their individual HSA and tax situation with an appropriate benefits or tax adviser.

Does DPC guarantee lower healthcare costs?

No healthcare arrangement can guarantee that an individual employee or company will have lower total healthcare costs.

Employees can still develop conditions requiring emergency care, hospitalization, surgery, specialty treatment, expensive medications, or other services outside primary care.

The more useful question is what the employer receives for the DPC membership.

With Firebird DPC, the employer is helping provide participating employees with ongoing access to a local family medicine practice for the primary care services included in membership.

Can DPC help employees get care without missing an entire workday?

Access can matter when an employee develops a medical concern during the workweek.

Some questions may be appropriate for phone, text, secure messaging, or telehealth. Other concerns require an in-person examination.

Having an established primary care relationship can help determine what type of evaluation is appropriate.

DPC cannot guarantee that an employee will avoid time away from work, but easier access can give employees another way to begin addressing a health concern.

What size business can use DPC?

DPC can be considered by businesses of different sizes, including small employers that may not have a large human resources department.

A business does not need hundreds of employees to begin a conversation about providing primary care access.

Firebird DPC is particularly interested in working with small businesses in Worthington, Columbus, and surrounding Central Ohio communities.

How does an employer get started?

The first step does not need to be complicated.

An employer can meet with Firebird DPC to discuss:

That conversation allows the business to determine whether DPC fits its employee-benefit strategy before making a commitment.

Direct primary care for small businesses in Central Ohio

Firebird Direct Primary Care is located in Worthington, Ohio, and provides physician-led family medicine to individuals, families, and participating employees.

For local employers, DPC offers a way to provide something very specific: access to an ongoing primary care relationship with a local physician.

It does not need to be presented as a solution to every healthcare expense to be a meaningful employee benefit.

Learn more about Firebird DPC for small businesses or schedule an employer Meet & Greet.