[idlewords]

I pay something like $430/month through Kaiser. My experience there is they are really good unless you need mental health stuff. I would especially recommend cancer—the views of SF from the chemo lounge are spectacular.

Kaiser is their own insurer/pharmacy, and works like a mini version of single payer. If you're younger than me (I'm 43) you may find some plans with them that are cheaper.

Another option is OneMedical, which is kind of boutique health care for wealthier people, but lets you do a lot more online than most medical services and may be worth a look. https://www.onemedical.com

[cdepman]

Also on Kaiser... they make you jump through hoops to get consistent mental health (regular weekly therapy). If you're persistent enough (call and be very direct about the kind of care you want) they'll hook you up with Magellan Health, the company they outsource to for mental health. Through Magellan, I was given a huge array of therapists to choose from in the Bay Area. If you shop around you can find someone you click with.

[pkaye]

Did they outsource the mental health care now? 15 years ago they had their own psychologist/psychiatrist staff you could meet. Did that change?

[idlewords]

My experience of this is secondhand, but they try to push people to group vs. individual therapy (though still in-house).

[ninetax]

Thanks for inadvertently pointing me to this [1], it was so interesting!

https://idlewords.com/2012/09/no_evidence_of_disease.htm

[dawhizkid]

Why do you say One Medical is for "wealthier people"? Outside of the $200 annual membership fee, it's no different than seeing any other physician if they are in-network for your insurance plan.

[celdon25]

I had several doctors from One Medical and they were not the best. However, there were a number of things that made up for it. Setting up appointments was easy, the locations were convenient, and you could even talk to the doctors via messaging on the website. Viewing and downloading test results could be done via their website also, and I've had to jump through hoops to get test results elsewhere.

However, to call it a true concierge practice would be a joke, in my opinion. I've never had the money for one (10k+ per year fee), but a friend of mine did have one of these, and at least in his case they were able to cure a serious back problem of his through cutting edge and non-invasive therapies. I wouldn't expect to find anything close to that at One Medical.

Still would say the One Medical membership fee ($200) is worth it if you can find a decent doctor there and if you're not happy with what you currently have.

[dawhizkid]

For me, the best thing about One Medical is that they have walk in labs and you can do your labs in their office without going to a Quest Labs or LabCorp office, which are not pleasant at all and usually have long waits.

[idlewords]

The only people I've ever seen there are young techies, and their offices are in hip parts of town rather than Medical Gulch.

[celdon25]

In other words, the offices are walking distance from many employers.

[idlewords]

Yeah, but you don't see the Chinese Community Healthcare Plan at 2 Embarcadero. It's just the vibe of the place, it's upscale.

[ceejayoz]

Folks who are living paycheck-to-paycheck probably aren't going to shell out an additional $200 fee.

[maxxxxx]

I have Kaiser through my employer and I like it a lot. Maybe they don’t have the shiniest and best but it’s solid, simple and predictable.

[baron816]

> I would especially recommend cancer

Umm...probably rephrase.