Open enrollment for Affordable Care Act plans available through HealthCare.gov is from November 1 to January 15. Keep your ARC care team by choosing from insurance plans we accept: Aetna, Ambetter, Blue Cross, Blue Advantage, MyBlue, Moda, Sendero, and UnitedHealthcare Exchange Plan.
All insurance plans accepted by ARC, including government plans, are listed online at ARCInsuranceInfo.com.
Eligible U.S. residents can apply for and make changes to their Medicare plans from October 15 – December 7. Medicare is a health insurance plan for people ages 65 and up, or those with certain conditions or disabilities. It is important to know your options and pick a plan that lets you keep your ARC care team.
Medicare patients at ARC are 7.5% less likely to use the ER than other patients across the nation.
Tips for patients
If you have received a letter from UnitedHealthcare (UHC) stating that any of the providers listed below are out-of-network, please be informed that refers to their former practice. The following physicians and APC remain in-network at ARC, and you may continue seeing them without any changes to your coverage:
Austin Regional Clinic (ARC) doctors, staff, and leadership are committed to providing our community with high quality convenient care. One of the ways we demonstrate this priority is through our online transparency.
You can review our provider ratings and comments on our web site with the confidence that they are all based on verified visits. We post all patient feedback relevant to the entire visit and only refrain from posting comments that are libelous, profane, or those that risk the privacy of our patients.
The below guide provides details about how we collect and share our patient feedback.
ARC partnered with Press Ganey to collect patient feedback about their doctor’s visit. We gather feedback from text surveys that are sent after the visit. Press Ganey is an independent third party customer feedback company that provides the technology to collect the feedback and display ratings and comments on our web site. All ratings are submitted by actual patients and verified by ARC.
Patients for whom we have a mobile phone number receive a text survey within two hours of checking in for their visit. Patients are asked to complete the survey and provide ratings and comments regarding their experience at different touch points of their visit. We use this feedback to recognize doctors and staff, identify issues we can correct, and enhance our care.
ARC posts all positive and negative patient feedback that is relevant to the entire visit. We refrain from posting comments that are libelous, profane, or those that risk the privacy of our patients.
ARC asks questions that touch on the overall patient experience related to their visit. Anyone seeking detailed information about each question can view the ratings for each specific question on the Reviews tab on the provider bio page on the website. We calculate our provider star ratings based on the responses to question number six below. We calculate our location star ratings based on the responses to all the below questions.
Since more recent data provides a more accurate picture, we require a minimum of 30 patient surveys per doctor in the last 12 months before we post a physician’s rating.
ARC physicians and staff review all comments and act to rectify issues. Since the purpose of the feedback is to allow us to improve the overall patient experience, we display the last 90 days of comments which are the most relevant for the practice.
No. Only patients having an outpatient visit by an ARC physician receive a survey. The results are based entirely from patients who have actually been treated by the physician in our clinics.
Comments are reviewed and approved prior to being published to the website. If a comment contains any personally identifiable information, that information will be removed from the comment.
Accepting new patients Available at Multiple Locations Ages seen: 18 - 99 Joined ARC: 2018
Dr. Desai grew up in diverse places, including Zambia, India, and Los Angeles. When she is not working, Dr. Desai loves to be outdoors – hiking, swimming, biking, and mainly walking on the trail near her house. Her other passions include travel, reading, and live music. However, much of her free time is spent being a mom! Dr. Desai goes to her children’s soccer and basketball games, and she enjoys watching Ultimate Frisbee and the Austin Torch. She also volunteers monthly at Mobile Loaves & Fishes, and at People’s Community Clinic.
In choosing a career, I found that medicine allowed me to apply science to help and change the lives of patients and, more importantly, allowed me to form a personal and long-term involvement with individuals of all ages, backgrounds, and interests. Cardiology transfixed me early: the physiology of the heart, the physical exam, the breadth and depth of the disease, and the many tools to actually make a long-term difference. I believe in suspending judgment, walking in the patient’s shoes, and educating the patient about why a medication or procedure will work. Knowing my patient’s wishes and belief system helps guide me.
Cardiac rhythm monitoring helps measure the rhythm of your heart in order to identify an irregular heart rhythm disorders.
Learn More
An echocardiogram (echo) is a noninvasive procedure used to check the heart's function and structures.
Nuclear stress tests use a small amount of radioactive tracer and an imaging machine to create pictures showing blood flow.
Stress echocardiography uses ultrasound imaging to show how well your heart works to pump blood to your body. It can help detect a decrease in blood flow to the heart from narrowing in the coronary arteries.
A stress test shows how your heart works during physical activity, revealing problems with blood flow within your heart. We offer three basic types of stress testing: exercise/treadmill stress tests, nuclear stress tests, and stress echocardiograms.
ARC offers telemedicine visits for primary and specialty care. Doctors can quickly evaluate you for a new health issue or follow up with you via a phone call or video visit from the comfort of your home.
A treadmill test helps a doctor determine how well your heart handles work. As your body works harder during the test, it requires more oxygen, so the heart must pump more blood. The test can show if the blood supply is reduced in the arteries that supply the heart. It also helps doctors know the kind and level of exercise appropriate for a patient.
512-344-0450 Fax: 512-406-7318
512-338-8388 Fax: 512-406-6274
512-244-9024 Fax: 512-406-7342
Rating based on "Did the healthcare provider or doctor provide the care you expected?"
Dr was very attentive to me and my questions. I never felt that she was in a hurry which is quite nice.
I had to wait over 30 minutes to be seen,
Dr Desai is always so helpful, knowledgeable and very kind!
Dr. Desai and her team were amazing. They were able to fit me in on short notice, and the doctor spent quite a bit of time with me discussing my case.
Great visit
Quick and pleasant
26 ARC physicians representing nine specialties have been named 2023 Super Doctors©. Find out who made the list!
November 29, 2023 < 1 min read
Twenty-five Austin Regional Clinic (ARC) physicians, representing nine specialties, have been named Texas Super Doctors® 2022 by Texas Monthly magazine.
December 1, 2022 2 min read
The ARC Gastroenterology and Cardiology specialists have moved from ARC Far West Medical Tower to their location across the street in the Austin Surgical Plaza.
December 10, 2020 < 1 min read
Dr. Desai is currently accepting new patients. Call to schedule at:
Children (ages 3-11) Adolescents (ages 12-18) Toddlers (ages 0-2)