In 2003, PhyNet Inc., a Texas nonprofit healthcare organization, was established as a physician’s network of primary care, pediatric care, internal medicine, and occupational medicine health clinics. Operating in eight East Texas communities, our physicians and advanced nurse practitioners provide quality primary care and coordinated care services. Our passion is total patient care and wellness. PhyNet CareTeams’ extended services include navigation to needed medical specialists, including hospital stays and rehabilitation. Not relying on our own medical network, PhyNet utilizes an “open system” of practice, referring patients to any and all specialists, labs, hospitals, and rehabs. As a result, the patient is not pigeonholed to in-network referrals and subject to fees with no choice. Second opinions and fee-for-service analysis are almost unheard of in the healthcare industry today. However, at PhyNet, we feel this transparency is what best demonstrates what an Accountable Care Organization should be and what patients need to make informed choices. (Fee-for-service (FFS) is a payment model where services are unbundled and paid for separately. In health care, it gives an incentive for physicians to provide more treatments because payment is dependent on the quantity of care, rather than quality of care.)