What Does PCP Mean In Health Insurance? 
PCP stands for Primary Care Physician . A person who is enrolled in an HMO as well as many POS plan must coordinate their medical treatments through their PCP . The PCP is also known as the `` gatekeeper '' because if one wishes to see a specialist they must first obtain a referral from their PCP . This is part of the way that managed care systems try to eliminate surpurflous expenditures , and streamline the quality of care . PPO and other open-network plans generally have deductibles and higher upfront costs to discourage frivilous medical expenditures . HMO 's and other managed care systems have very low upfront costs but rely on ones Primary Care Physician to eliminate frivilous expenses . 