Direct-care clinic to offer family-friendly healthcare in Cassville
Dr. Roark
April 1, 2015
Charlea Mills
For people in the Cassville area, a new healthcare option will be available beginning June 1. Dr. Lisa Roark, M.D., is opening a direct-care clinic at 1101 Main Street in Cassville.
The purpose of a direct-care clinic is that it allows individuals and families without insurance to purchase a membership and, in turn, get services for free or significantly less than other offices. According to Dr. Roark, direct-care is a way for the community to get back to a less complicated form of healthcare. She said, “It’s going back to the days where it was just the doctor and the patient. It’s no longer the insurance companies controlling healthcare. It’s the doctor and the patient.”
By not spending the extra funds to deal with insurance billing, the clinic is able to pass on the benefits to members. It makes the entire process less complicated for both the doctor and the patients.
Dr. Roark became inspired to open the clinic after attending an American Academy of Physicians Conference in Washington D.C. She said, “I heard all of these doctors talking about getting to go back to just caring for the patient, and I got excited. I thought, ‘I’ve got to do this. We need this.’”
By paying a monthly fee, individuals or families enrolled in membership in the clinic are offered unlimited office visits during business hours, unlimited access to the physician, including phone, text and email, as well as physicals, chronic disease management and much more. Another advantage is that the visits are longer and more comprehensive, generally lasting 30 minutes to an hour.
If a patient needs a medication, it is provided at the clinic’s cost, which is a huge savings over using a pharmacy. Labs ordered and drawn at the clinic are also offered at cost to process them. For example, a cholesterol test would normally cost a patient $133, but for a member of the direct-care clinic, the test is $3. For patients needing Amlodopline, a blood pressure medication, it would cost around $62 at a pharmacy, but only $0.66 at Roark Family Health.
Dr. Roark said that most patients don’t know what something will cost them when they go to the docotr, and she wants to eliminate that secrecy. “It’s all smoke and mirrors. You get healthcare, and then you get a bill in the mail. People have no idea what it is going to cost them. With this way, there are no more smoke and mirrors. It’s all right there on the website.”
Dr. Roark said that the biggest reason that she opted to open the clinic is to support the community where she lives. She said, “I want to work where I live. My kids are in the Cassville school system. I want to support my community.”
After completing her residency at Cox in Springfield, Dr. Roark went on to work for CoxHealth in Aurora since then. However, she wanted to be back in Cassville full-time instead of driving back and forth.
She went on, “Basically, I feel like the Affordable Care Act has left a huge portion of our population without affordable health insurance. They basically don’t have primary care. We have lots of people with high-deductible insurance, and they are paying out $3,000 to $5,000 out of pocket in deductibles before they have any coverage and can see their physician.”
Legislation just passed in the House of Representatives at the Missouri State Capitol to allow membership in direct-care clinics as exemption for the federal health insurance requirement under the Affordable Care Act. Next, it will go to the Senate for a vote. Representative Scott Fitzpatrick has been supportive of the legislation. He said, “I’m hopeful that HB 759 makes it to the finish line. This bill is a perfect example of taking down governmental barriers to consumer choice in receiving healthcare. During a time when traditional healthcare delivery options are skyrocketing in cost, more consumer choice will generate more competition. When there is more competition, consumers win.”
The dynamic of the community also plays into the need, according to Dr. Roark. With the number of farmers and small businesses in the area, she said many are paying out of pocket for healthcare because there isn’t affordable insurance. She said, “So what it comes down to is, with the Affordable Care Act, most of our community in southwest Missouri is left where they have no primary care access. I see it in my clinic all the time, and my patients are really hurting for it. I see it as a need. I see it in my family and my friends, and I think I can help.”
Dr. Roark’s husband, Griff, an architect, did the remodelling of the clinic. Dr. Roark said, “I’m so lucky that he has been able to get the clinic ready. It’s really exciting.”
All services and care that is part of the membership of the direct-care clinic is available on Dr. Roark’s website, http://www.roarkfamilyhealth.com. Roark Family Health will open officially on June 1. Roark Family Health can be reached at (417) 846-6814 and by email [email protected].
Dr. Roark is an Exeter High School alumna and a 2007 graduate of the University of Missouri – Kansas City medical school. She and Griff have four children, Maddock, 8, Eli, 5, Jocelyn, 4 and Sylas, 2.
Charlea Mills
For people in the Cassville area, a new healthcare option will be available beginning June 1. Dr. Lisa Roark, M.D., is opening a direct-care clinic at 1101 Main Street in Cassville.
The purpose of a direct-care clinic is that it allows individuals and families without insurance to purchase a membership and, in turn, get services for free or significantly less than other offices. According to Dr. Roark, direct-care is a way for the community to get back to a less complicated form of healthcare. She said, “It’s going back to the days where it was just the doctor and the patient. It’s no longer the insurance companies controlling healthcare. It’s the doctor and the patient.”
By not spending the extra funds to deal with insurance billing, the clinic is able to pass on the benefits to members. It makes the entire process less complicated for both the doctor and the patients.
Dr. Roark became inspired to open the clinic after attending an American Academy of Physicians Conference in Washington D.C. She said, “I heard all of these doctors talking about getting to go back to just caring for the patient, and I got excited. I thought, ‘I’ve got to do this. We need this.’”
By paying a monthly fee, individuals or families enrolled in membership in the clinic are offered unlimited office visits during business hours, unlimited access to the physician, including phone, text and email, as well as physicals, chronic disease management and much more. Another advantage is that the visits are longer and more comprehensive, generally lasting 30 minutes to an hour.
If a patient needs a medication, it is provided at the clinic’s cost, which is a huge savings over using a pharmacy. Labs ordered and drawn at the clinic are also offered at cost to process them. For example, a cholesterol test would normally cost a patient $133, but for a member of the direct-care clinic, the test is $3. For patients needing Amlodopline, a blood pressure medication, it would cost around $62 at a pharmacy, but only $0.66 at Roark Family Health.
Dr. Roark said that most patients don’t know what something will cost them when they go to the docotr, and she wants to eliminate that secrecy. “It’s all smoke and mirrors. You get healthcare, and then you get a bill in the mail. People have no idea what it is going to cost them. With this way, there are no more smoke and mirrors. It’s all right there on the website.”
Dr. Roark said that the biggest reason that she opted to open the clinic is to support the community where she lives. She said, “I want to work where I live. My kids are in the Cassville school system. I want to support my community.”
After completing her residency at Cox in Springfield, Dr. Roark went on to work for CoxHealth in Aurora since then. However, she wanted to be back in Cassville full-time instead of driving back and forth.
She went on, “Basically, I feel like the Affordable Care Act has left a huge portion of our population without affordable health insurance. They basically don’t have primary care. We have lots of people with high-deductible insurance, and they are paying out $3,000 to $5,000 out of pocket in deductibles before they have any coverage and can see their physician.”
Legislation just passed in the House of Representatives at the Missouri State Capitol to allow membership in direct-care clinics as exemption for the federal health insurance requirement under the Affordable Care Act. Next, it will go to the Senate for a vote. Representative Scott Fitzpatrick has been supportive of the legislation. He said, “I’m hopeful that HB 759 makes it to the finish line. This bill is a perfect example of taking down governmental barriers to consumer choice in receiving healthcare. During a time when traditional healthcare delivery options are skyrocketing in cost, more consumer choice will generate more competition. When there is more competition, consumers win.”
The dynamic of the community also plays into the need, according to Dr. Roark. With the number of farmers and small businesses in the area, she said many are paying out of pocket for healthcare because there isn’t affordable insurance. She said, “So what it comes down to is, with the Affordable Care Act, most of our community in southwest Missouri is left where they have no primary care access. I see it in my clinic all the time, and my patients are really hurting for it. I see it as a need. I see it in my family and my friends, and I think I can help.”
Dr. Roark’s husband, Griff, an architect, did the remodelling of the clinic. Dr. Roark said, “I’m so lucky that he has been able to get the clinic ready. It’s really exciting.”
All services and care that is part of the membership of the direct-care clinic is available on Dr. Roark’s website, http://www.roarkfamilyhealth.com. Roark Family Health will open officially on June 1. Roark Family Health can be reached at (417) 846-6814 and by email [email protected].
Dr. Roark is an Exeter High School alumna and a 2007 graduate of the University of Missouri – Kansas City medical school. She and Griff have four children, Maddock, 8, Eli, 5, Jocelyn, 4 and Sylas, 2.
