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CONCIERGE MEDICINE CAREER READINESS ASSESSMENT · CMT · SINCE 2007
Most physicians exploring this model have the same question. Not "what is it" — but "is it right for me, for my patients, for my life right now?" This assessment gives you some key considerations —
Is concierge medicine
actually right FOR you?
What does your practice model actually produce?
Set your role, panel, and market. See what the concierge family of practice structures would realistically produce in panel size, retainer range, overhead, and recurring revenue share, plus a separate, honest look at Direct Primary Care's two very different pathways. Built for physicians, NPs, PAs, and the RNs and care teams building alongside them.
Your starting point
Model economics at your inputs
Direct Primary Care — a separate track, not a concierge tier
DPC is structurally different from every model above: no insurance billing at all, ever, for covered primary care services. It doesn't sit on a spectrum with concierge tiers, it's a different family of practice. DPC also splits into two distinct pathways with very different acquisition dynamics.
Legal and regulatory considerations, in brief
This tool models economics only. Two regulatory points shape which structure is even legally available to you, and they explain why the "insurance billing preference" input above matters.
If you continue billing Medicare or commercial insurance, the membership fee cannot duplicate anything already covered by that payer, and the fee's structure has to hold up under the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, it cannot function as an inducement tied to covered referrals. Violations of the Medicare rule can carry civil monetary penalties and program exclusion. This is well-established federal guidance, not a gray area, dating back to a 2002 exchange between Congressman Henry Waxman and HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson that signaled the typical concierge structure was Medicare compliant when built correctly, CMT has published the original correspondence.
In practice this comes down to two lanes: stay enrolled in Medicare/insurance and structure the fee around genuinely non-covered access and amenities, or opt out of Medicare/insurance entirely and go cash-only. DPC, above, structurally sidesteps this question by never billing a third party at all. This is a summary, not legal advice. For deeper analysis, CMT's Legal Commentary hub features on-the-record guidance from James Eischen (Eischen Law Office), Jonna D. Eimer (Roetzel & Andress), and Michele P. Madison (Bradley), read it here.
Where these ranges come from
- Concierge Medicine Today, Frontier Annual Report — industry panel-size and retention observations, 2024/2025 editions
- Macbach 2026 Concierge Medicine Financial Benchmarks — retainer bands, overhead, and recurring-revenue share by tier
- American Academy of Family Physicians — traditional primary care panel-size benchmarks, 2023
- Grand View Research — concierge medicine market sizing, 2023–2024
- SHRM, 2024 Employee Benefits Survey — self-insured employer adoption of direct primary care
- American Medical Association, "Pondering direct primary care? 10 potential benefits and drawbacks" — patient acquisition and early-income drawbacks of the individual cash-pay pathway
- Assurance Healthcare — typical employer-sponsored DPC membership rate range
- IRS Notice 2026-5, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Pub. L. 119-21) — DPC/HSA fee cap and compatibility requirements for 2026
- Burr & Forman LLP — Medicare membership-fee and civil monetary penalty guidance for concierge practices
- Congressman Henry Waxman/HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson correspondence, March 2002 — via the Tommy G. Thompson Collection, Marquette University Archives, republished by CMT
- Concierge Medicine Today, Legal Commentary — commentary from James Eischen (Eischen Law Office), Jonna D. Eimer (Roetzel & Andress), and Michele P. Madison (Bradley)
Most physicians land here for one of these reasons:
You're exhausted by the current model but not sure if this is the answer or just an escape.
You've read about it but can't find an honest, vendor-neutral take on whether it fits your situation.
You're worried about the transition — financially, relationally, professionally.
You want someone to tell you clearly: yes, or no for now, but not forever, or no, it’s just not for you.
CMT has covered this field independently since 2007. We've talked to thousands of physicians who've made this decision — in both directions.
“This assessment was built from nearly two decades of physician interviews, national conference conversations, and independent research. It doesn't tell you what to do. It gives you the framework to decide for yourself — clearly, honestly, without a vendor agenda.”
— Michael Tetreault, Editor-in-Chief · Concierge Medicine Today · Est. 2007 · Independent since day one
WHAT THE ASSESSMENT COVERS:
01
Your readiness profile→
Financial, operational, and personal factors that determine fit
02
Market fit indicators→
Whether your patient panel and geography support this model
03
Honest risk factors→
What makes transitions fail — and whether those apply to you
04
Your next step→
A clear recommendation based on your answers — not a generic guide
This assessment is useful if — and honest if it's not.
Good fit
Physicians actively considering a transition
Physicians 1–5 years from making a move
Residents exploring career paths
Physicians wanting an independent view
Not the right fit
Physicians who've already decided and are in execution mode
Those seeking legal or financial advice
Practices already operating in this model
CONCIERGE MEDICINE CAREER READINESS ASSESSMENT · CMT · SINCE 2007
Get a real answer. Not a sales pitch.
PDF download. Use it at your own pace. No vendor affiliation. Written by the editor of the industry's independent trade publication.
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01
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02
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