Executive Suite: Wayne Lipton, Rockville Centre

Insurance reimbursements for primary care doctors have remained relatively flat over the past 15 years, forcing doctors to pack in 20 to 30 patients a day -- and creating a business opportunity, said Wayne Lipton, managing partner at Concierge Choice Physicians in Rockville Centre. Studies show doctors spend 20 minutes or less with patients, but with concierge medicine people pay extra to get more time and quicker scheduling from their doctors.

Lipton launched CCP from "an empty office with one person" in 2005, survived the recession and gradually expanded to 24 states. For a membership fee of $1,600 to $3,000, concierge patients get immediate appointments and more time and attention from their doctors. Lipton, 64, said the model allows many independent doctors to stay in business. He earns payback on a per-patient basis.

A graduate of Baldwin High School, Harvard, and the University of Chicago business school, he worked at his family's chain of drugstores and then went into health care management with his physician brother. He worked for a startup concierge company before starting his own business. Lipton, a former deputy mayor of Rockville Centre, is also president and principal cellist of the South Shore Symphony.

What are the benefits of the concierge model?

There are two appointments per hour with concierge services, so the doctor spends a lot more time, there's no waiting time, it's same-day or next-day appointments. You get the doctor's cellphone number, a dedicated phone line at the office, plus the doctor acts as an adviser and advocate for a patient.

Why do you think it's important for doctors to remain independent?

Independent doctors make independent decisions, and that independence is actually very helpful in the end, because they don't feel obligated within their group to refer people to a closed system of referrals.

SEE PHOTOSSee who got hired, promoted on LI

What would you say to patients who say they shouldn't have to pay extra for a doctor's time and availability?

The most common experience with patients is that they should bring a copy of "War and Peace" if they sit in the waiting room of desirable doctors. Doctors would like to spend a lot of time with each patient, but [they can't do that] and keep their doors open.

What made you think medical concierge would take off?

The direction in health care, particularly for primary care doctors, has been less and less personalized care. And being the age that I am, I've always appreciated doctors who spend time with me. And it seemed to me that price pressure would continue.

What are some business mistakes you've made?

It took a lot of trial and error to figure out how to grow practices. One of the biggest stumbling blocks is that we went into an optional, higher-end, market-type product right in the middle of one of the biggest recessions in our country.

What risks do you face now?

We spend six figures on every practice. If somebody only gets 10 or 20 patients [to sign up for concierge], we lose a lot of money because there just isn't enough revenue for us on that. So we do an analysis and project how many patients this person is capable of getting. It includes a demographics study and a survey, which we spend thousands of dollars to do in anticipation of a relationship with the doctors. Many doctors go ahead with the relationship with us after that, but not everybody. So the risk is if we throw the party and nobody comes.

How does your hybrid plan work?

Doctors spend a small part of the time doing a concierge model and about 75 percent in traditional practice. An urgent matter takes priority, then there are defined hours for the concierge program and defined hours for the traditional program. Doctors have said, "You know I was going to quit and now I can continue to be a doctor for thousands of people because there are 200 helping me to make my life a little bit more enjoyable."

CORPORATE SNAPSHOT

NAME: Wayne Lipton, managing partner, Concierge Choice Physicians in Rockville Centre

WHAT IT DOES: Works with physicians across the nation to develop customized medical concierge programs

EMPLOYEES: 35 full time, 24 on Long Island; 3 part time on Long Island

REVENUE: $30 million