Against a backdrop of debate on Capitol Hill over extending subsidies for ACA Marketplace plans and drug prices, UberDoc wants to cut out payers as the middlemen. Instead, it wants to simplify booking appointments with primary and specialty care physicians through a platform where patients or self-funded employers pay out of pocket for their care. In an interview, UberDoc CEO Sean Kearney talked about its approach, plans for 2026 and how companies like UberDoc make healthcare cheaper.
Price transparency is an important part of UberDoc’s offerings. Patients see a fixed price before they book, and that price doesn’t change. No surprise billing, nor insurance requirements for the appointment. Physicians set their prices.
“We want to drive this market economy, we really want physicians to be in control of the services they provide, and we want patients to be empowered to understand the cost for the care that they receive,” Kearney said.
Kearney clarified that there is a place in the healthcare system for insurance but it should be used where it provides the most value. He added that patients should have ownership over their health costs and outcomes.
Kearney’s healthcare background started with investing in and advising health tech companies as well as taking on CFO roles at Genomenon and Ruya AI. He also works as an adviser at Tau Ventures and Upswing Health.
UberDoc launched in 2016 when vascular surgeon Paula Muto saw a way to streamline the doctor-patient relationship and improve physician job satisfaction by cutting out payers. Unlike most companies in this space, the majority of medical appointments UberDoc supports are in-person. Physicians get quick and easy payments, but they can also balance their work between self-insured employers and working directly with consumers.
The mission of the company, as Kearney sees it, is to disrupt the insurance-based ecosystem, giving physicians the power to drive care guided by their training and experience while giving patients the ability to book the care they need without network restrictions.
“If you think about the ecosystem as a whole, today’s healthcare consumer is limited by the insurance-based framework. As we start to reframe how our healthcare ecosystem works, more people will recognize that price transparency and immediate access is going to empower consumers to avoid the burdens and the headaches of premiums and insurance referrals. That not only benefits the consumer, but will give physicians the ability to go back to delivering healthcare as they intended when they pursued this career path.”
Kearney said UberDoc balances existing physician brick and mortar spaces with virtual visits for a hybrid care model. Roughly one-quarter of UberDoc’s patients opt for virtual care. The bricks and mortar spaces are geographically diverse and are spread out across 44 states. Virtual care plugs gaps in regions where it lacks physicians. Patients can pay by credit card or through their health savings account.
“We do not function within the confines and the barriers of the existing insurance-based healthcare system,” Kearney said. “Our approach is radically simple. We derive revenue through an appointment by appointment basis in out-of-pocket transactions. Unlike other emerging health platforms out there, there is not a subscription charged to the patient or a membership fee, so patients are only paying for the care that they or their loved ones need.”
UberDoc has additional revenue streams as well. It has a SaaS revenue model that some of its board-certified physicians subscribe, which allows them to gain access to its suite of software tools. Business-to-business contracts are channeled through partnerships with employers and other facilitators, with whom UberDoc has a revenue share agreement. For its employer segment, companies pay based on a per member/per month revenue model, based on the number of employees using the service.
Kearney claims that the breadth of specialists it offers is unmatched by other companies. Unlike health providers like Hims and Hers or Ro, UberDoc covers all specialties and is not limited to a subset of healthcare.
AI represents an exciting opportunity for UberDoc in a few areas. More than 66% of physicians reported using AI in their clinical practice in 2024. More than half, 57%, regard reducing the administrative burden for running physician practices as the biggest impact for AI, reducing costs and improving clinicians’ quality of life. UberDoc is developing a product suite and roadmap that will help to provide physicians with new tools and capabilities coming out in 2026. It will be aimed at reducing friction, facilitating onboarding and credentialing, and helping physicians to market their practices.
Kearney also sees opportunities to use AI to support patient navigation to help patients identify the most appropriate physician specialist to book an appointment with, based on their symptoms and needs. It could also be deployed to help patients understand what their out-of-pocket costs will be with their insurance carrier, based on the providers in their area. In this way, UberDoc can help people make the best healthcare decisions for themselves and their families.
“M&A will be a key component of our growth strategy,” Kearney said. “Our platform has proven to be remarkably universal, which has drawn strong interest from partners across the healthcare ecosystem. We’re exploring M&A and strategic collaborations that expand access, enhance our technology, and strengthen our value to both physicians and patients. At the same time, we’re tapping public capital markets to fuel this next stage of growth.”
UberDoc plans to trade through the Canadian public equity exchanges before moving into the over-the counter exchange in the U.S. next year.
As changes take place in the ACA marketplace, premiums rise or subsidies shrink, patients will be incentivized to pursue more affordable and transparent alternatives that UberDoc offers.
Photo: ljubaphoto, Getty Images