Howell clinic rolls out new model for primary care

BlueSky Health has plan for $30 a month

“If someone has a sore throat, they can take a picture of their sore throat, send us a text, and we can
potentially treat it just that way,” Valenti said. “But if they do need to come in and see us, we can generally
see them same day or next day.”

While BlueSky Direct currently is being sold to and used by individuals, Valenti said the goal is to
collaborate with employers, unions, municipalities and insurers — and save everyone money in the long
run.

Preventive care and disease management, he said, are key components to a quality primary care product.
“When you buy coffee, you want it to be hot and you want it to taste good. We’re saying to any employer
or individual or any payer to hold us to two criteria: Have we kept you out of the emergency room, and
have we kept you out of the hospital? If we’ve done those two things, then we’ve done our job,” Valenti
said.

BlueSky Health opened its Howell clinic in April 2012. It’s other clinic in Houghton was founded in 2006 by
Dr. Jeff Huotari, the company’s CEO.

The Howell clinic is the launch pad for its direct primary care model, which Valenti said isn’t being
provided anywhere else in Michigan on a grand scale.

“It makes a lot of sense to us; it’s just a matter of getting the word out,” Valenti said.
To enroll in BlueSky Direct, patients pay a six-month minimum upfront but can cancel at any time after
that.

For more information about BlueSky Direct, call 517-545-2400 or 888-288-0201,
or go to http://www.blueskyhealth.org/ bluesky-direct.

http://www.livingstondaily.com/article/20131229/NEWS01/312290012/Howell-clinic-rolls-out-new-model-primary-care