Ask just about any self-employed professional to discuss the benefit they miss most from their salaried days and you're likely to get an earful about the trials and tribulations of individual health insurance plans.
The data from Pew Charitable Trusts' most recent
"State of the City" report pegs the number of freelancing Philadelphians at just north of 46,000. That's a fairly sizable group of workers, many of whom have had to navigate the frustrating world of health coverage all on their own.
But for the self-employed pros who rent coworking space from
CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia, the individual health coverage maze has become much simpler. Those members can now take advantage of a collaboration between CultureWorks and
R-Health, a direct primary care provider Flying Kite
covered this past February. In March, the Center City coworking space
Benjamin's Desk also began offering R-Health plans to its members.
Simply put, the main benefits of the increasingly popular direct primary care model -- in which insurance plans aren't accepted -- involve lengthier doctor-patient interactions and, in many cases, lower fees. CultureWorks'
coworking members who sign up with the care provider will receive one free month of R-Health membership and a reduced ongoing rate.
"We try to work with local organizations that have something to offer that would be helpful to our membership," says CultureWorks coworking manager Zach Lifton, "things that make people's lives easy."
Other
perks for coworkers include discounted
ZipCar rentals, and health club and farm share memberships.
"The idea is that we're here to support people and not overcomplicate what they actually want to be doing," explains Lifton. "R-Health is one of those things that's easily understood, and it has the potential to work very well with the types of people who are here."
Writer: Dan Eldridge
Source: Zach Lifton, CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia