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Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)
An organization that provides a wide range of comprehensive health care services through a designated group, or network of doctors, hospitals, labs and other providers. When you join an HMO, you select a Primary Care Physician (PCP) from its staff or from a list of PCPs. Your Primary Care Physician is responsible for coordinating all of your medical care. Referrals to specialists and hospital admissions are arranged by your Primary Care Physician or the HMO company. There are two basic types of HMOs: Staff Model HMOs and Network HMOs. An HMO can be a mixture of two types. In the staff model, a group of physicians is employed directly by the HMO and practice from a facility that is provided by the HMO. In other HMOs, an independent network of physicians is recruited and contracted by the HMO and practice from health facilities not provided by the HMO.
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