Direct Primary Care: Personalized, Accessible Medicine
One simple monthly membership gives you full primary care with longer visits, fast scheduling, and direct access to your doctor by phone, video, or secure messages. DPC delivers personalized, high-quality care with no insurance billing, no copays, and no hidden costs.
Now accepting patients in Walnut Creek and the East Bay.
Not concierge medicine:
Concierge = monthly or annual fee + insurance bills, copays, and deductibles
DPC = affordable monthly fee, no insurance billing at all
Why DPC?
More time together means more care handled in-house, fewer referrals, and better coordination when specialists are needed. Membership includes primary care, a comprehensive annual physical with InBody 580 body composition analysis.
Works with insurance:
DPC covers your everyday care; insurance still covers specialists, hospitals, and major events.
Cost-friendly:
Great with high-deductible plans. Fees may be HSA/FSA eligible (check your plan).
WHY PAY FOR DPC WHEN I ALREADY PAY FOR HEALTH INSURANCE?
DPC complements your insurance—it doesn’t replace it. Insurance still covers hospital care, specialists, and major events. Your DPC membership invests in time, access, and savings.
What’s included:
Un-rushed Appointments: A smaller patient panel means 30–60 minute visits when needed and shorter wait times.
Comprehensive Annual Physical: Extended exam with InBody 580 body composition analysis.
Direct Doctor Access: Same- or next-day visits when needed, plus text, phone, or virtual communication.
Wholesale Pricing: Deeply discounted labs, supplements, and imaging when paying cash. I help you choose the most cost-effective option—insurance or cash.
Use Your Insurance When Needed: Continue using insurance for specialists, hospital care, prescriptions, labs, and imaging outside the office.
Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT): Hands-on treatment for pain, headaches, respiratory issues, stress, and more. Membership includes one complimentary session per year plus discounted additional visits.
Additional Services: Included or discounted services include vaccines, B12 injections, red light therapy, earwax/foreign body removal, and in-office ultrasound (availability and indications may vary).
HOW CAN I MAKE DPC WORK WITH MY FINANCES?
HDHP-Friendly: Use DPC for everyday care and save insurance for major expenses. Some high-deductible plans may pair with DPC under current legislation.
HSA/FSA Eligible: Membership fees may qualify for HSA or FSA reimbursement depending on your plan—check with your benefits provider or tax advisor.
Employers
Businesses that have transitioned to the DPC model have reported remarkable shifts in how their employees utilize healthcare:
100% Reduction in unnecessary Urgent Care visits
82% Reduction in surgeries needed through better preventative care
66% Reduction in specialist visits (we handle more in-house)
65% Reduction in Emergency Room visits
43% Reduction in total hospitalization days
35% Reduction in hospital visits
Why employers are choosing DPC
Direct Primary Care works because it makes care easier to access and utilize.
When employees have direct access to their physician—with time, communication, and continuity built in, they’re more likely to address concerns early, stay on top of chronic conditions, and avoid unnecessary escalation.
Simple, predictable access
No copays. No deductibles for office visits. No billing complexity.
Employees know exactly how to get care—and use it.Relationship-based care
Your team has a physician who knows their history and can follow issues over time.
That consistency leads to more thoughtful care and better long-term outcomes.
How employers use DPC
Most companies plug DPC in one of two ways:
Pair it with a high-deductible plan
Direct Primary Care addresses the majority of routine healthcare needs, including primary care, urgent concerns, and chronic disease management.
A high-deductible or catastrophic plan provides coverage for less frequent, high-cost events such as hospitalizations and surgical care.→ This structure can reduce overall premium costs while maintaining access to comprehensive care.
Go self-funded (for more control)
Employers provide DPC memberships directly and allocate funds—or utilize stop-loss insurance—for major medical expenses.
→ This approach offers greater transparency and control over healthcare spending, while keeping resources within the business.
Why this approach works
Employers are looking for benefits that are both meaningful and sustainable.
DPC supports both:
A benefit employees value and use
Easy access to care without barriers.Less disruption during the workday
Longer visits, shorter wait times, virtual care, and direct communication reduce time away from work.Predictable costs
A fixed monthly fee replaces the variability of traditional insurance premiums.
FAQs
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Concierge practices typically charge high annual fees and bill your insurance for services the insurance company deems medically necessary.
DPC is different. It’s one affordable monthly membership that covers a wide range of primary care services. There’s no insurance billing, no copays, and no hidden costs.
While both models offer enhanced access and personalized care, DPC is specifically positioned as a cost-effective alternative, aiming to improve patient-centered care without the exclusivity or high costs associated with concierge practices.
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There is NO enrollment fee.
Membership Rates:
Adult Individual (Age 20+)
· Monthly Rate: $308.97
· With ACH Discount: $300.00
Annual Pre-payment (Discounted)
· Annual Rate: $3,522.26
· With ACH Discount: $3,420.00
Child Individual (Age 10–19)
· Monthly Rate: $154.49
· With ACH Discount: $150.00
Annual Pre-payment (Discounted)
· Annual Rate: $1,761.19 (includes 5% annual discount)
· With ACH Discount: $1,710.00
Couple Membership
· Monthly Rate: $592.19
· With ACH Discount: $575.00
Annual Pre-payment (Discounted)
· Annual Rate: $6,750.97
· With ACH Discount: $6,555.00
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We’re so happy that you’re interested! You can give us a call at (925) 448-2610.
Our team will help you schedule your visit, complete any required forms, and set up your extended establish-care appointment with Dr Tarantino.
Prefer to book on your own? You’re also welcome to self-schedule your new patient visit online at your convenience.
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This is a common question we hear! It’s important to remember that DPC is designed to complement your existing health insurance (which still covers specialists, hospitalizations, and major medical events), not replace it.
When you join our DPC practice, you are investing in time, access, and savings:
• Extended, Unrushed Appointments and Shorter Wait Times: With a smaller patient panel, most visits are scheduled for 30–60 minutes, allowing us to address your concerns thoroughly and without the rush typical of traditional insurance-based care. Our more flexible scheduling also helps minimize wait times.
• Easy Access to Your Doctor: Members can typically schedule same-day or next-day appointments for urgent needs and communicate directly with me via text, phone, or virtual visit when appropriate.
• Wholesale Pricing for Care: Membership includes access to transparent, significantly discounted pricing on many common services—such as lab tests (often up to 90% off standard rates), physician-grade supplements (up to 25% off), and wholesale pricing for imaging when available. Savings and availability may vary.
• Using Insurance: You can still use your insurance for services not covered under our membership—such as specialist visits, emergency care, hospitalizations, prescription medications, labs, and imaging performed outside our office.
• Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT): A hands-on approach to diagnosis and treatment that can help concerns including musculoskeletal pain, asthma, respiratory infections, headaches, stress, and anxiety. Your membership includes one complimentary OMT session per year (non-transferable, no cash value) and discounted rates for additional visits.
• Stay tuned for updates on new services! With more time, I hope to be able to offer additional procedures and treatments—included in your membership or available at a significant discount—such as B12 shots, light therapy, and in-office ultrasound (availability subject to change and indication).
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Many patients find that DPC costs less than what they currently spend on copays, urgent care visits, and ER trips.
Because you can reach Dr Tarantino more easily and appointments aren’t rushed, we can often prevent problems from escalating and keep you healthier in the long run.
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Yes. While we don’t bill insurance directly, we strongly recommend that patients carry some form of major medical coverage for services that DPC does not cover. You can use insurance for labs, imaging, prescriptions, vaccines, ER visits, hospital stays, and specialist care.
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Possibly. Recent federal guidance has opened the door for DPC memberships to qualify as HSA and FSA eligible expenses, but interpretation can vary. We recommend checking with your HSA or FSA administrator to confirm coverage for your plan.
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No. Direct Primary Care is not insurance. We contract directly with our patients to provide primary care services. Think of it like a gym membership or a cell phone plan—your monthly fee covers primary care directly with us, with no insurance middlemen.
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If you are hospitalized, a hospitalist will oversee your care during your stay. The hospitalist’s services and other hospital fees will be billed to you or your health insurance plan. Patients may request that Dr. Tarantino follow up during and after hospitalization.
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We coordinate with trusted specialists and hospitals when needed and will continue to refer and advocate for you every step of the way. While those services are billed separately, our goal is to ensure you have seamless, high-quality care both inside and outside of the office.
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DPC practices do not accept Medicare or other insurance for their membership fees. Your Medicare coverage will still apply to services performed outside the DPC office, such as lab tests, imaging, specialist visits, hospitalizations, and medications, which Dr Tarantino CAN continue to order.