Holladay physician forgoing insurance plans

Because 40 percent of his overhead won't be devoted to processing insurance claims, Jennings said his patient population will be limited to about one-fifth of the typical patient load that is found in most primary care offices, meaning he can spend much more individual time with patients.

He believes he's catching the beginning of a wave that will sweep through medical profession.

"I think in the future, we'll see more physicians opting out of government programs and even private insurance programs. To continue participating is just too onerous and restrictive," he said.

"Health insurance should be prevention against catastrophic loss," rather than trying to be "all things to all people," he said. If viewed in that light, people could afford to purchase insurance to cover a medical catastrophe, and then rely on primary care providers who provide services for a flat fee for the bulk of their care.

"Our idea of what health insurance coverage should be has become distorted. If we expected the same level of service from our homeowner's insurance, they'd be sending people out to change our light bulbs and sweep our gutters."

e-mail: carrie@desnews.com