Why DMOS Added Direct Primary Care to Its Employee Benefits Strategy
Most employers are not looking to reinvent their employee healthcare benefits.
They’re trying to solve a more practical problem.
Despite investing heavily in health insurance, many organizations still find employees struggling to access care. Primary care appointments can take weeks. Urgent concerns often end up in the emergency room. Chronic conditions go unmanaged because scheduling, costs, and convenience create barriers to care.
For Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons (DMOS), those challenges were becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
Like many employers, DMOS was facing rising healthcare costs while looking for ways to improve the experience employees had when accessing care. As a healthcare organization itself, DMOS had a unique perspective on the problem: leadership understood both the employer side of healthcare spending and the realities of how care is delivered.
Several years ago, the organization began exploring direct primary care as part of its employee health benefits program.
Rather than immediately rolling it out to employees, the leadership team decided to test the model themselves first.
What they found was a dramatically different primary care experience.
Instead of a rushed appointment, conversations were longer. Care felt more personal. Most importantly, there was time to build a relationship with a provider.
That experience convinced DMOS leadership they had found something worth offering employees.
Improving Access to Care
One of the primary goals behind the initiative was improving access.
Many employer healthcare solutions focus on managing costs after care occurs. Direct primary care addresses a different challenge: helping employees access the right care before a situation becomes more expensive.
For DMOS, that became apparent quickly.
Like many organizations, the workforce includes employees with young families. When a child develops an ear infection in the evening or an employee needs medical guidance outside traditional office hours, uncertainty often leads to higher-cost decisions.
Without an accessible primary care relationship, employees frequently default to urgent care or the emergency room.
Direct primary care provided a more accessible first point of contact.
Employees gained same-day or next-day access to a provider who could address concerns quickly, answer questions, and help determine the most appropriate next step. Instead of navigating the healthcare system alone, they had a trusted resource available when they needed it.
That change in access translated into measurable results.
According to DMOS leadership, the organization experienced significant savings during the first year simply by reducing unnecessary emergency room utilization and helping employees access care in lower-cost settings.
Why Utilization Matters
One of the common challenges with traditional healthcare benefits for small business and large employers alike is that having coverage does not necessarily mean employees use it effectively.
People often delay care because appointments are difficult to schedule, visits feel rushed, or out-of-pocket costs create hesitation.
Direct primary care changes that equation.
When employees know they can access care without worrying about copays or surprise bills, they are more likely to seek care earlier, follow up when recommended, and establish an ongoing relationship with a primary care provider.
DMOS has seen this firsthand.
Participation in the program has steadily increased over time as employees become familiar with the model and begin sharing their experiences with coworkers. More importantly, employees managing chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure are returning for follow-up appointments and engaging more consistently with their care plans.
That type of engagement is important because it creates opportunities to identify health concerns earlier, address issues before they become more serious, and support better long-term outcomes.
A Different Approach to Affordable Employee Healthcare
For many organizations evaluating corporate healthcare benefits, the conversation often centers on premiums.
While insurance remains an important part of the healthcare ecosystem, it was not solving the access problem DMOS was experiencing.
Direct primary care complemented existing coverage by strengthening the part of healthcare employees use most often: primary care.
Rather than replacing insurance, it created a more effective front door to the healthcare system.
Over time, DMOS has seen healthcare expenses decrease as utilization of the direct primary care benefit has increased. The organization believes improved access, stronger provider relationships, and earlier intervention have all contributed to those results.
For employers, that distinction matters.
The goal is not simply reducing costs. It is improving how employees interact with healthcare in the first place.
How Direct Primary Care Supports Recruitment and Retention
Healthcare benefits remain one of the most visible benefits employees evaluate when choosing where to work.
DMOS has found that direct primary care has become a meaningful differentiator.
As employees experience easier access to care and share positive experiences with colleagues and prospective hires, the benefit contributes to a stronger employee experience overall.
For leadership teams focused on recruitment and retention, that creates value beyond healthcare spending alone.
It becomes a benefit employees actively use and talk about, rather than one they only think about when something goes wrong.
Looking Forward
DMOS believes the future of healthcare will require employers to think differently about access.
Rising costs remain a challenge across the healthcare system, but improving access to primary care offers a practical place to start.
By incorporating direct primary care into its employee healthcare benefits strategy, DMOS has improved access to care, increased employee engagement, and reduced healthcare spending over time.
For employers evaluating healthcare benefits for small business teams or larger organizations, the lesson is straightforward:
When primary care becomes easier to access, employees use it. When employees use it, healthcare works better for everyone.
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