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Local doctors and medical groups are sick over recent changes Zocdoc made to its pricing policy. On July 1 the company started charging for a patient's initial booking rather than a monthly fee. The change means doctors who attract lots of new patients through the site will end up paying more.
Zocdoc had pitched the change as a way to attract suburban, rural and other practices that don't have enough patients to justify paying Zocdoc a flat monthly fee.
How the physician community reacts could be pivotal for one of New York's most promising health- technology companies, which since its 2007 founding has raised $223 million from such investors as Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Goldman Sachs and Khosla Ventures.
Some doctors have voiced frustration but have stuck with the platform. Major groups with hundreds of physicians, including NYU Langone and Tarrytown-based ENT & Allergy Associates, have stopped using the service. An NYU Langone spokeswoman said the health system's contract with Zocdoc had ended, and it decided not to renew because it has its own online scheduling system. ENT & Allergy declined to comment.
Coughing up more cash
Zocdoc was created to help patients book doctor appointments online. Its website allows users to search according to their symptoms or desired specialist type, location and insurance plan. Search results include ratings for each doctor based on reviews, which are verified to have come from actual patients. Users, for whom Zocdoc is free, can select an available time slot and fill out forms online.
A company spokeswoman told Crain's that more than half of providers in New York are paying the same or less annually for Zocdoc's service under the new policy. Doctors could opt in to it beginning April 1. Providers were able to stick with the old...