A Simpler Path to Care: What Small Businesses Should Know About Direct Primary Care

If you run a small business in Montana, you have probably had some version of this conversation: benefits renewal season arrives, the new numbers land on your desk, and your stomach drops. You want to take care of the people who show up for you every day. The math just keeps getting harder.

You are not imagining it, and you are not alone. A recent article from SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, looked closely at why health benefit costs keep climbing and at one alternative more employers are exploring: direct primary care. You can read the full piece, Direct Primary Care: An Alternative Way to Curb Health Care Costs, on SHRM's site. Here is what stood out to us, and what it might mean for businesses here at home.

The squeeze on small employers

The numbers SHRM cites tell a familiar story. Drawing on KFF's Employer Health Benefits 2024 Survey, the article notes that group premiums for family coverage rose 52 percent between 2014 and 2024, outpacing both inflation and wage growth over the most recent five years. At the same time, SHRM's own 2024 Employee Benefits Survey found that 88 percent of employers rank health benefits as important, ahead of every other benefit category.

That is the bind. Health benefits matter more than almost anything else you can offer your team, and they are also one of the fastest growing line items on your books. According to KFF data referenced in the article, only about half of companies with fewer than 50 employees offer health coverage at all. For many owners, it is not a lack of caring. It is arithmetic.

What direct primary care actually is

Direct primary care, often shortened to DPC, is a simple idea. Instead of running every checkup, sick visit, and follow-up through a claims process, a patient (or their employer) pays a flat monthly membership directly to a primary care practice. In return, members get ongoing access to their care team for the everyday things: annual visits, managing chronic conditions, the sinus infection that will not quit, the questions you would otherwise put off asking.

One thing worth being clear about: a DPC membership is not health insurance, and it is not a replacement for insurance. It covers primary care. As the SHRM article explains, employers who use this model typically pair it with separate coverage for the bigger events, like specialist care and hospital stays. Think of DPC as the front door to care, not the whole house.

Why employers are paying attention

SHRM points to a few reasons this model is gaining traction. Costs become predictable, because a membership is a known monthly number instead of a moving target. Access tends to improve, because primary care stops competing with a copay or a deductible in the back of an employee's mind. And the article shares the experience of one St. Louis company that made the switch and found clearer pricing and better access to care for its team.

That last point matters more than it might seem. A benefit only helps your people if they actually use it. When the everyday doctor visit feels easy and already paid for, folks tend to go sooner, ask questions earlier, and stay ahead of small problems before they become big ones.

Questions worth asking before you explore DPC

The SHRM piece offers a practical checklist for employers considering this route, and we think it is a good one. Ask what services a practice includes in membership, since some cover labs and more while others focus on visits. Ask what additional coverage your team would still need for specialists and emergencies. Ask who will handle the administrative side. And ask your employees what they actually want, because a survey of your own team is one of the cheapest and most useful benefits tools there is.

Availability matters too. SHRM notes there are nearly 2,400 DPC practices operating across the country, but they are not everywhere yet. That is one reason we care so much about building this kind of care right here in Montana, where the nearest option has too often been a long drive away.

Where CoreMed fits in

At CoreMed, this is the model we have built our practice around: real relationships with a care team that knows your name, unhurried visits, and a flat membership that makes budgeting simpler for families and for the businesses that employ them. We work with individuals, families, and local employers who want their people to have an easy front door to everyday care.

If you are a business owner staring down another renewal letter, or just curious what membership-based primary care could look like for your team, we are always happy to talk it through. No pressure and no jargon, just a conversation with neighbors who do this every day.

Visit coremedhealth.com or reach out to us at info@coremedhealth.com to learn more.

This article is general information only and is not medical, legal, or financial advice. A direct primary care membership is not health insurance. Please talk with qualified professionals about your specific situation.