The doctor will see you — whenever you want.
More and more wealthy New Yorkers are spending big for concierge medical care that goes way above and beyond annual check-ups.
“I’m 70% doctor, 15% psychologist, 10% rabbi, 4% hairdresser and 1% friend,” Dr. Jordan Shlain told NYNext. His team is also on call pretty much 24/7, with clients able to reach them via email, text or phone at all hours.
Shlain is the founder of Private Medical, an on-call physician service he started in 2002 in Silicon Valley. There are now outposts in New York City, Miami, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Beverly Hills and Santa Monica, and none of them take insurance.
Though data on the industry is limited, concierge medicine has grown into a $7.47 billion market this year and projected to nearly double to $13.5 billion by 2030, according to a report from Research and Markets.
Shlain’s company is perhaps the most high-profile of a growing world of elite providers, along with Atria and Sollis, that are so hot they don’t even advertise — relying instead on word-of-mouth to attract new clients willing to shell out, on average, around $30,000 for the privilege of having a doctor on call (Price varies depending on factors like age, location and the number of patients in a practice).
Concierge doctors can get you impossible-to-nab appointments with sought-after surgeons and specialists and meet you at a hospital in the event of an emergency. Traveling and fall ill? Private, for one, can arrange for worldwide medical evacuation jet services.
You’ll still need to pay for all those services out of pocket or with traditional insurance, though.
Concierge docs can also vet the latest wellness trends. Shlain recalls testing the contents of NAD+ — a supplement popularized by celebrities like the Kardashians and Hailey Bieber that claims to slow aging by revitalizing cells — for a patient, and discovering it contained MDMA and herbicide.
And Private is hardly the most expensive option. Atria Health and Research Institute — which has locations in NYC and Palm Beach and is planning seasonal pop-ups in Aspen and the Hamptons — charges a onetime $100,000 initiation fee plus $60,000 for annual membership, though younger members receive a reduced rate.
There are now an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 concierge doctors across the US, and smaller providers, including Elitra, MD² Park Avenue and Health Center Hudson Yards, have also entered the New York market in the hopes of getting a toehold in the space.
Even major hospital networks, like Mount Sinai and Weill Cornell Medicine are launching subscription services that offer personalized amenities like at-home visits and on-demand appointments.
Longevity investor Alan Patricof believes the concept will become even more ubiquitous in future.
Asked if concierge medicine could become mainstream, he predicted: “Five years? No. Ten years? Maybe. Fifteen years? Yes.”
Critics argue the high cost creates a divide between the wealthy and everyone else, but Dr. Shlain believes the model has a twofold benefit: creating a premium service now that could be made more affordable in the future and attract more doctors to general practice — a field often overshadowed by specialization.
He told NYNext he has already helped doctors launch lower-cost concierge services across the country that charge much smaller fees like $2,500 per year.
“You can’t build a model out of thin air,” Shlain explains. “First, we create the ideal healthcare experience—then, we figure out how to make it accessible at a lower cost.
“Great health is always a luxury.”
This story is part of NYNext, an indispensable insider insight into the innovations, moonshots and political chess moves that matter most to NYC’s power players (and those who aspire to be).
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