Why You Still Need Health Insurance

"You don't buy insurance because you're going to get sick. You buy it because you might."

Think of car insurance. You wouldn’t use your auto policy to pay for an oil change or new tires. Insurance is meant to cover major incidents, not everyday upkeep. Unfortunately, in healthcare, we’ve come to expect insurance to cover everything—from minor visits to major procedures—which has led to a bloated, inefficient, and expensive system. Ironically, this overreliance on health insurance has driven both rising costs and poorer health outcomes (Henry, AMA 2024).

Even if you’re part of a direct primary care (DPC) practice, we strongly encourage you to maintain some form of health insurance. Why? Because unexpected health needs can still arise.

What if you're diagnosed with cancer? What if you need a major surgery? What if you’re in a car accident? These situations can lead to enormous medical expenses—often the kind that result in financial devastation. In fact, medical bills remain one of the leading causes of bankruptcy in the United States (Konish, CNBC 2019).

What's disheartening is that even if you have “good” insurance, it doesn't mean you have good access to a provider. And that's where we step in.

While DPC focuses on prevention and personalized care, it’s not a replacement for insurance. DPC can cover the vast majority of your routine and preventive healthcare needs at an affordable, transparent price. But insurance is there for the big things—those rare but costly events that no one plans for.

For the sake of transparency: my own family has health insurance. Ironically, we don't currently see a DPC physician—primarily because there isn’t one conveniently located near us. We’re fortunate to be fairly healthy right now, and our needs are minimal. But as we age and develop more complex needs, we’ll absolutely be looking for a DPC practice. I sincerely hope more of them open on our island soon.

So yes, DPC is a smart and affordable choice for managing most of your health needs—but it doesn’t eliminate the need for insurance. A balanced approach gives you the best of both worlds: personalized care day-to-day, and financial protection when the unexpected happens.