Lecture abstract:

Dr. Chris Ewin advocates for direct primary care (DPC) as a transformative approach to medicine in his lecture, “A Journey Toward Patient-First Healthcare.” Drawing on his extensive experience, he critiques the traditional healthcare system’s reliance on insurance, sharing his path to a model that prioritizes direct patient care. Through personal narratives and insights into the challenges and successes of implementing DPC, Dr. Ewin illustrates how this model fosters a stronger patient-doctor relationship, enhances accessibility, and ensures more personalized care.

Dr. Ewin founded 121MD, a direct primary care family practice, in 2003. He received his BS and medical degree at Tulane University and completed his family practice residency at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas.

He is past president of the Society for Innovative Medical Practice Design (previously the American Society of Concierge Physicians).

Dr. Ewin believes we have a primary care, third-party payment fee-for-service systems problem in the US. In the mid 2000s, he helped craft the first iteration of an amendment to Section 213(d) of the Internal Revenue Code that allows the term “medical care” to include amounts paid by patients to their physician in advance for the right to receive medical services on an as-needed basis. This would allow fees paid for direct primary care to be treated as a medical expense. This effort is evolving and ongoing.