Diagnostic Order Support for Direct Primary Care Clinics

DPC and the Missing-Order Scenario

Direct Primary Care practices are built on direct patient access, transparent pricing, and same-or-next-day availability — a model that DOD's operational philosophy closely aligns with. The DPC model works well for most primary care needs, but there are specific scenarios where a member may need a diagnostic imaging order and the DPC physician is not immediately reachable:

• •Member traveling out of state and needs an imaging order at a local facility
• •DPC physician on leave, at a conference, or otherwise unavailable
• •Member needs a second-opinion independent review of a prior imaging recommendation
• •After-hours urgent (but non-emergency) imaging need where the DPC physician prefers an independent review for a specific request

In these scenarios, DOD provides an independent provider review that the member can access without waiting for the primary DPC physician. This does not replace or compete with the DPC relationship — it supplements it for a specific operational gap.

DPC-Specific Compliance Notes

• •DOD does not provide ongoing primary care, chronic disease management, or longitudinal care for DPC members.
• •Recommending DOD does not create a financial relationship between the DPC practice and DOD.
• •Members should be informed that DOD provides a single-visit independent review and does not have access to their DPC records unless the member provides relevant history during intake.
• •Orders from DOD are independent clinical decisions. The DPC physician is not responsible for orders issued by DOD.

Frequently Asked Questions