The Leading Business Education Network for Doctors, Financial Advisors and Health Industry Consultants

BY Dr. DAVID EDWARD MARCINKO MBA CMP™

http://www.MARCINKOASSOCIATES.com

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Healthcare Business and Medical Franchises

The International Franchise Association (IFA) estimates that that about $1 trillion in sales, or 40% of all retail sales, were made through franchised establishment last decade. On the positive side, franchises offer a branded practice concept with management training and access to proprietary methods, marketing and advertising campaigns and a host of support. Moreover, there are franchises available for virtually every healthcare product or service, including: diet, weight loss and fitness; vein care and laser surgery; vitamins, nutriceuticals and pharmaceuticals; plastic and cosmetic surgery; dermatology, tanning and skin care; home healthcare and extended, etc.

CITE: https://www.r2library.com/Resource

Some well know established healthcare and medical franchises are: Doctors Express, Being There Senior Care, Home Care Assistance, Personal Training Institute, Inches-A-Weigh, Remedy Intelligent Staffing, Visiting Angels, Unlimited MedSearch, prnYourHealth and Any Lab Test Now.

On the downside, franchises incur high start-up costs, rules and obligations, payment of franchise percentages and many contractual obligations.

Questions to consider when contemplating this business entity include:

 Franchise stability, track record, licensing and costs.
 Training, support and proximity of other franchises.
 Independence, ownership laws, contracts and dispute resolutions,
 Screening methods, market size and potential market share.
 Replacement cost and transferability?

For more information on Uniform Franchise Offerings Circulars (UFOCs) contact:

Frandata
1130 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20036
202.659.8640

International Franchise Association7
1350 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20005
202.628.800

Multi-Level Marketing and In-Office Dispensation

A multi-level marketing (MLM) business delivers products or services through a chain of independent distributors rather than traditional retail business outlets. Existing medical practices not only pursue income ancillary, but it is not unusual for beginning practitioners to plan for and include it in their start-up models and business plans.

The first layer is usually the distributor who must sell products/services and recruit additional members to produce a hierarchical organization with many employees. Each distributor profits from direct sales, and from a varying commission stream down-line. It may be best to investigate before you leap into these situations since some may be fraudulent pyramid schemes that sell no useful product or service, and requires only recruiting others into the scheme. Be sure to obtain a Dunn & Bradstreet or TRW credit
report about any MLM company and inquire about current litigation. Most authorities agree that it take 3-5 years before serious money is made in the MLM business.

Moreover, care must be taken with this model. According to colleague Stephen Barrett MD, writing on the Mirage of Multilevel Marketing: “Many any physicians are selling health-related multi-level products to patients in their offices. The companies most involved have included Amway (now doing business as Quixtar), Body Wise, Nu Skin (Interior Design), Rexall, and Juice Plus+. Doctors are typically recruited with promises that the extra income will replace income lost to managed-care.

Back, in December 1997, the AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (CEJA) advised against profiting from the sale of “non- health-related products” to their patients. Although CEJA’s policy statement does
not mention products sold through multilevel marketing, CEJA’s chairman said the statement was triggered by the growing number of physicians who had added an Amway distributorship to their practice.”

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