You run Frontier Direct Care, and for the last decade, you've been a board member for Young Life. What connections do you see between your non-profit experience and your work in healthcare?
For the last 10 years, I’ve been on the board for the South Central Region of Young Life Ministries of Texas. One of the greatest privileges I have in fundraising to support this organization is knowing that funds will go to the youth of the Rio Grande Valley. My community is a region in the country that is known for its socio-economic disadvantages. So many youths are stuck in unhealthy lifestyles or have zero support systems. But Young Life connects with teens in such a powerful way, putting relationships at the very core of what it plans. In addition to heavy programming and weekly touch-points and events with kids, we also get to send them to camp in destinations like Hill Country, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, and Colorado. Think about it—some of these kids have never left the Valley before, let alone the state! They not only get to see and experience a new part of the country, but they also build life-long friendships in the process.
So, working with the down-and-out or the underprivileged youth of South Texas most definitely crosses over into what we see in healthcare. So much of our community doesn’t have access to quality healthcare. Sure, we know of the uninsured or underinsured, but there’s a large group that is connected with a doctor who doesn’t know them, who is unavailable, or who is restricted to operate inside the bureaucratic system of red tape. With DPC, we put relationships first and meet members where they’re at. Many are stuck in unhealthy lifestyles and have no support system. Our intentionally relational providers go the extra mile and walk alongside members to treat them holistically. We are seeing life-changing results, which have a ripple effect in our community.
You provide direct primary care in the Rio Grande Valley. One in three people there is uninsured or underinsured. What gets you up in the morning ready to keep fighting?
While one in three people in the RGV are uninsured or underinsured, what keeps me fighting with Frontier Direct Care as my platform is the large majority of Americans who are functionally uninsured. Before founding Frontier Direct Care, I was a self-insured employer. I experienced firsthand the impossible task of selecting a health insurance plan I knew offered absolutely no benefit to my employees. I suffered alongside my employees under the unreasonable premium increases. I knew I wasn’t giving them a helpful benefit, but I didn’t see a better, affordable option. So I left them functionally uninsured. They had that little plastic insurance card, but the benefit did nothing for them. They still had to foot the bill in most cases.
At the beginning of Frontier Direct Care, we recognized the tremendous benefit of direct primary care membership, preventative care that will handle 80-90% of an individual’s lifetime healthcare needs. In fact, we were publicly anti-insurance. Regardless of how we felt about big-box insurance, over time, we’ve come to learn that insurance isn’t the enemy (it’s quite essential for the catastrophic events in our lives); it’s how we’ve positioned insurance in the health plan that has been problematic. The real hero of the plan is DPC. Put DPC at the center and build checks and balances around primary care, then the employee wins. The employer wins. The DPC doctor wins. And little by little, we’re changing healthcare. That keeps me fighting.
What are the best and worst things about your job?
The best thing about my job is fixing the healthcare system and making benefits cost-effective for employers. I’ve been a business owner since college. I’ve never worked for someone else. I’ve always been in the position to provide insurance to my employees, government mandate or not. I know what options are out there for small, medium, and large employers. They suck. So to know that we’re offering something better, more affordable, more effective, is the best. To see the savings projections turn into realized savings for employers is super cool. I love when we can create retention and reverse absenteeism. And I’ll never get sick of hearing stories about our providers saving lives by taking the time with their members and uncovering the root of chronic issues.
The worst thing about my job is the lack of education around insurance (with or without help from brokers). BUCAH has brainwashed America into thinking you have to have good insurance, their insurance, or you’re gonna die. We don’t do that with car insurance, so why do we do it in healthcare? That’s the hardest part, not letting the frustration of ignorance, miseducation, or deliberate lies get to you.
What misconceptions about DPC would you like to clear up?
The direct primary care movement is gaining momentum in the US thanks to DPC Coalition, Hint Connect, Health Rosetta, and politicians like Dan Crenshaw. We believe a rising tide lifts all boats and are excited for individuals who find DPC solutions for their families. I do not discount this; however, DPC isn’t just a great solution for individuals. The biggest impact we’re seeing at Frontier is DPC and cash-centric health plans for employers. Think about it: 78% of Americans are eligible for health insurance through their employers. With putting DPC at the center of the health plan, think of the savings we could carve out.
Who else in healthcare inspires you, and why?
Dr. Eric Bricker of Ahealthcarez is truly an inspiration. I first got introduced to Dr. Bricker through his YouTube channel in early 2023. Then this past spring, I was able to meet him personally. If you don’t know him, he creates digestible, clear videos aimed at demystifying healthcare concepts for the average person. Sure, I’m a business owner in the healthcare industry, but I have a background in construction, and let’s face it, big BUCAH profits on keeping healthcare confusing. Dr. Bricker is a friend of direct primary care and cash-centric plans. His content is tremendous, and we consistently reference it at Frontier. When I asked him about how he was able to create that much content, he said he would have created it even if no one watched it. I find that truly inspiring.
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