Gulf Coast Direct Primary Care

11/24/2025

Dear Patients and Friends,

Thank you for being members of Gulf Coast Direct Primary Care. I am truly, truly thankful for each and every one of you.

When I started this practice nearly ten years ago, I didn't know if I would be successful. What I DID know was that the healthcare 'system' assembly-line model of 10 minute visits, triple and quadruple booking, running more than an hour late all day long, and charting long into the night wasn't good for me OR for my patients. I decided to take a chance--I told myself I would try my own practice for a year, and if it didn't work, I would go back and take a job with one of the big hospitals or groups again. Because of YOUR trust, I didn't have to do that. I'm so proud and thankful to be able to offer affordable and accessible care to nearly 600 of you (we have had as many as 800 patients, but that doesn't allow me enough time to serve on boards and committees and do the writing that I also enjoy). I couldn't do it all without my amazing right-hand office manager, Lili, and I'm also grateful for our incredible in-house psychotherapist Dr. Cynthia Davey (who has been with me for 9 years), and our 'personal' massage therapist Lori.

All of these individuals share my vision of providing affordable, high quality care without gimmicks or false promises. That's why you will never see our practice offering non-evidence based procedures or treatments. I hope you will consider this when you see the numerous advertisements out there promoting various tests and treatments. Ask yourself (or ask me): Why doesn't MY doctor do that? The answer is generally going to be: Because it doesn't work, it wastes your money, and/or it can cause you harm. If I'm recommending a test or treatment to you, I want you to know that it's because I believe in it based on my understanding of the underlying science and my interpretation of the balance of risks, benefits, and side effects - and most importantly, it's something I would want for myself or those I love.

DPC AND INSURANCE UPDATES

Those of us in the DPC world are very excited that the current administration has clarified and codified the use of HSAs - health savings accounts- for direct primary care. You can pay up to $150/ month per person for a DPC using your HSA. We hope (very much hope) to see some true catastrophic insurance plans start to come out that can be paired with a DPC membership to cover health emergencies like serious illness, hospitalization, or surgery. I haven't found any TRUE catastrophic plans yet, but I am watching very closely and will let you know if I find one.

Some people are using indemnity plans or health sharing ministries - those generally pay you back or 'share' your expenses with a community. They are less expensive but riskier. There are short-term major medical insurance plans which are much less expensive, but unfortunately you can only get them for 36 months (expanded from 12 months during the last Trump administration). Once I ran down my 36 months, I switched to a high deductible health plan with an HSA but unfortunately, the premiums are quite expensive. I'll update you as I see other options.

OFFICE HOLIDAY CLOSURE

We'll be in the office today, but I'm going to close the office Tuesday-Friday to give Lili some much-deserved vacation time. You can still text and email me - and Lili will answer and return phone calls throughout the week.

Thank you again, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving! - Dr. B

Rebekah Bernard MD
Gulf Coast Direct Primary Care
17595 S Tamiami Tr #204 Fort Myers, FL 33908
239-322-3860 (office phone)
239-437-4548 (fax)
GulfCoastDPC@gmail.com

09/29/2025

Patients often ask me what they can do to prevent memory loss - here's one important step!

09/05/2025

09/03/2025

Latest newsletter!

Dear Patients,

Thank you for being members of Gulf Coast Direct Primary Care! This is your newsletter update with information I hope you will find to be of value.

FLU VACCINES ARE HERE!

It’s that time again… and I STRONGLY encourage everyone to get a flu vaccine. Here’s my personal story: I hate getting shots. I mean, I really hate them – I’m a huge baby about any type of medical procedure, and I will look for any excuse to get out of things – including passing on the flu shot back when I was in training because I was ‘young and healthy’. Well…. Sure enough, I caught influenza that year – and I have never been sicker in my life. I’m talking shaking chills, body aches so bad that I prayed to the Lord to ‘take me, I’m ready.’ I also bargained with God that if He got me better, I would never reject another flu shot – and to this day, I take my vaccine every year. I’ll get my own flu shot out of our stock – and I wouldn’t advise you to do anything I wouldn’t do for myself or my family. So, please, come by and get your flu shot. Just $30 (our cost) – or if you have insurance, you can get it at any local pharmacy for free. I suggest everyone get vaccinated by the end of October if possible – any time from now is fine.

COVID19 UPDATE

There is finally an updated COVID19 vaccine – it has been tweaked to cover omicron and the latest subvariants. I have not recommended boosters up to this point but now it’s time, if you want to improve your protection against COVID19. It’s probably a good idea to get this new vaccine – especially for anyone over 65 or with any underlying health conditions – and remember that being overweight is considered a risk factor for increased illness with covid, so that puts many of us in the high-risk category.

Our current political challenges make it hard to navigate the world of vaccines – but it looks like most pharmacies should be carrying the new covid19 vaccine. You MIGHT need a prescription from me – if so, just reach out and we’re happy to help. If you have questions about whether you should get this or any other vaccine, please contact me.

IS COVID19 EVEN A THING ANYMORE?

Yep. I’m seeing it, and it’s even surging a bit with school starting back. One of my patients was recently QUITE sick with it – not dying, but she kind of felt like it (the way I did back when I had that influenza in training!). It’s not a bad idea to test yourself if you get sick just to see if it’s covid – the home tests still seem to be working pretty well.

One fascinating new option for prevention of COVID19: A new study showed that people who used azelastine (Astelin) spray, a nasal antihistamine, had LOWER rates of covid19 – it seems to be protective. In the study, they sprayed it in their noses three times per day (usually you use it twice a day for allergies). I do have it here and you can get it over-the-counter – definitely smart if you already have seasonal allergies as it will do double work!

THANK YOU! Thank you again for being patients of our practice! Please contact me if you have any suggestions for how we can improve your care. - Dr B

Rebekah Bernard MD
Gulf Coast Direct Primary Care
17595 S Tamiami Tr #204 Fort Myers, FL 33908
239-322-3860 (office phone)
239-437-4548 (fax)

07/22/2025

Know anyone who might benefit from our free, quality, healthcare services?

The Clinic is always looking for new and potential patients that could benefit from our scope of services. Our patients are a community of low-income, working but uninsured Collier County adults that suffer from chronic illnesses that usually have no other place to go. At the Clinic services are free.

Please call or visit our website for more information.