Practice Management
Regular readers of JUCM News know mergers between large corporations in previously disparate markets (eg, insurance and provision of healthcare) have been coming fast and furious. Simultaneously, fewer newly minted physicians are choosing primary care as their practice of choice as on-demand healthcare continues to grow. None of these trends occurs in a vacuum, of course—in fact, it’s likely that there are directly links among them, as pointed out in an article just published in …
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The number of nurse practitioners currently licensed to practice in the U.S. has more than doubled since 2007, with urgent care continuing to be a source of growth. Of the 248,000 NPs now practicing around the country, 5.9% (14,632) are caring for patients in urgent care centers, according to just-released data from the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. AANP President Joyce Knestrick, PhD, APRN, DFNP, FAANP points to the growing shortage of physicians as evidence …
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Insurance claims for urgent care visits grew by 1,725% between 2007 and 2016—more than seven times the growth rate of claims for emergency room visits, according to new data from FAIR Health. The FH Medical Price Index and FH Healthcare Indicators reports also reveal that the median price for an urgent care visit is lower than the cost of new-patient visits to office-based physicians ($242 vs $294, respectively). Fair Health based its data on over …
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The average wait times to see a physician across multiple settings dropped 5 minutes in 2017, compared with 2016, but patients continue to confirm that comparatively longer wait times most often equate to lower satisfaction with their overall experience. Given that convenience is one key attribute of urgent care, this offers insight into the ongoing growth of the industry. The most recent data from the Medical Group Management Association reveal that the average wait time …
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It’s too late to be truly unprecedented, but Cigna’s announcement that it plans to buy Express Scripts, the largest pharmacy benefit management company in the U.S., signals that lines between “traditional” segments of the healthcare industry will continue to be breached for the foreseeable future. Once the deal is done, the combined company will reside in Cigna’s Connecticut headquarters, headed by Cigna CEO David Cordani. The Express Scripts unit will still be based in St. …
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Vermont is looking at changing how it classifies urgent care centers, with an eye toward forcing operators to file a certificate of need (CON) before starting construction projects. Right now, independent Vermont urgent care centers are viewed as physician offices, which are exempt from filing a CON. The state’s Office of the Health Care Advocate says it would be more correct to view them as “medical facilities,” which would trigger the need for them to …
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Perhaps inspired by plans other major employers have to launch their own healthcare entities for employees, Apple will roll out onsite health clinics for its workers this spring as it scales back dependence on outside providers. Rather than making a formal announcement, however, Apple launched a new website for AC Wellness—recognizing correctly that business media would take notice. The site describes AC Wellness as “an independent medical practice dedicated to delivering compassionate, effective healthcare to …
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Recognizing what’s already going on around the country, Uber is putting a name on its efforts to be the provider of choice when patients need to see a doctor but can’t get there under their own steam. The minor twist Uber Health offers is that it is designed to encourage providers to arrange transportation for their incoming patients. While that may appear to favor traditional primary care practices, urgent care operators should consider that ready …
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A new study by Solutionreach reveals that healthcare consumers find three things most important in improving the doctor-patient relationship—and in helping them choose who to visit when they need care. Perhaps as importantly, in terms of helping urgent care providers recognize differences in how patients of various ages view healthcare, the report breaks down responses into the categories of Millennials (ages 21–34 for purposes of this study), Generation Xers (35–51 years old), and Baby Boomers …
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With the opening of its new 24/7 Center for Connected Care, Penn Medicine now operates one of the larges telehealth hubs in the U.S. In addition to virtual urgent care services, the system houses Penn Medicine’s 15-year-old e-ICU, and a service that focuses on patients with chronic illness. It has 50 full-time employees. The move reflects growing use of virtual care across the country, as confirmed by data from Sage Growth Partners revealing that 56% …
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