topic: Legal and Financial Concerns

Once you’ve taken care of your basic groundwork, the next step to establishing a DPC clinic is to hire a business lawyer that will help lead you through the sometimes complicated corridors of DPC administration.

While the formation of any sort of health institution will require a number of formal legalities, DPC physicians require certain legal instruments and documentation that other groups of physicians don’t, including:

• DPC Standard Patient Agreements
• DPC Medicare (Opt-Out) Patient Agreements
• Filing Opt-Out Documentation with appropriate Medicare Carriers
• Advertisement / Website Reviews
• In-office Dispensing Considerations

And so, in this case, it helps to have a lawyer on hand who specializes in DPC legislation. We can recommend Luanne Leeds. You can find her website here:

https://www.leedslaw.us/

Her practice specializes in the establishment of DPC clinics as well as any other related legal issues or requirements. You’ll need her to help you with a number of things, including:

• Creating a business entity
• A patient agreement
• A Medicare opt-out waiver

Another great resource for any legal DPC queries can be found on www.dpcfrontier.com. Dedicating to growing the DPC movement, the DPC Frontier is invaluable for all things legal and DPC related. It’s especially helpful if you just need some quick counseling or a couple of questions answered, as their services and information are available free of charge.

For free legal work such as contract reviews, we also recommend getting in contact with Keen Umbehr:

Email: keen@atlas.md

After a lawyer, hiring an accountant is the next important step to legitimizing your DPC clinic.
As a doctor, bookkeeping, payrolls, taxes, and any other financial considerations are likely to be your last concern when it comes to starting a clinic and helping patients. In fact, during the initial phases of your establishment, fiscal matters are likely to only add stress to the entire process. That’s why it makes sense to outsource your accounting requirements to a professional.

It will also help your clinic to be financially responsible from the start. While the initial start-up costs may be a little high considering that the accounting needs of your clinic within the first few months won’t be too complex, the good news is that all of it is tax-deductible, so whatever you spend now will offset your income tax at a later date. This makes it a good idea to establish your accounting framework now, so you don’t have to worry about any potential complications later.

If you’re financially-savvy and understand how to do your own bookkeeping, payroll, and taxes, and are willing to shoulder this burden on top of the other tasks at hand, consider investing in accounting software such as QuickBooks, Freshbooks, and Xero.

If, however, you’re unsure how to chart the uncertain waters of accountancy, we can recommend Reid Hash. He is an expert when it comes to tax planning and tax preparation, and will be invaluable when it comes to establishing a financial plan for your clinic. Get in touch with him using the following details:

Tel: 785-272-4484 
Email: r.hash@ssccpas.com

Depending on the needs of your clinic, you can expect to pay anywhere between $100 – $500 for accounting services.