Practice Management
Specialty urgent care centers of every stripe are on the rise across the country. One of the arguably most natural fits, orthopedics, is proving to be an especially attractive prospect for a Michigan couple who’ve launched an aggressive plan to open 32 specialty locations over the next 5 years. All will be operated as OrthoNOW franchises. Right now, Kelly and Mark Olin’s flagship location in Flint, MI averages around 20 visits a day, though they’re …
Read More
MedExpress, which falls under the umbrella of UnitedHealthGroup’s Optum healthcare business, is planning to launch 12 new urgent care centers in Texas in the near future, with the first three expected to open between now and October. As recently as December 2017, it had just two in the entire state. The move is part of an expansive plan to increase UnitedHealthGroup’s healthcare holdings across the country. The company’s management has acknowledged a long-term goal for …
Read More
Walgreens has launched a new “digital marketplace” designed to guide patients to the best care setting (out of the 17 partners they’re working with, at least) for whatever their symptoms might be. The idea is to simplify the process of deciding whether an urgent care center, hospital emergency room, specialty provider—or a Walgreens health provider, of course—will be best suited to offer the patient the right level of care. Physician house calls are also possible …
Read More
Projections on the ongoing—and increasing—growth of the urgent care market continue to build, with the latest data predicting it to exceed $26 billion by 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23% in that 6-year period. Market Research Engine’s latest report, Urgent Care Center Market By Ownership (Corporate Owned, Physician Owned, Hospital Owned); By Services (Illness, Injury, Physical, Vaccination, Diagnostic, Screening) and by Regional Analysis—Global Forecast by 2017–2024, breaks down the industry by …
Read More
A new post from PatientEngagementHIT.com (PEH) identifies urgent care as one of the “emerging players allowing patients to connect to care outside of a doctor’s office hours,” a key benefit at a time when access to care is getting more challenging all the time. PEH emphasizes four broad areas in which progress could be made to help patients get to see the clinicians that would be best suited for their current complaints in a timely, …
Read More
Atlantic Health System and MedExpress have forged a partnership to coordinate care among 11 MedExpress neighborhood medical centers and Atlantic Health System’s network of physicians, hospitals, and other care sites in northern New Jersey. The aim is to guide more MedExpress urgent care patients to an Atlantic Health System facility when further care beyond the urgent care setting is needed. Conversely, MedExpress locations will act as an extension of Atlantic Health System for urgent care …
Read More
Membership fee-based medical practices are proving to be an attractive option for patients and families that are uninsured, according to an article just published in the Chicago Tribune. Such practices don’t take insurance at all, but charge their “members” a monthly fee for unlimited office visits, some related services, and discounts on medications and lab tests. At MedLogic, one practice cited in the article as an example, that fee is roughly $140 a month. Fees …
Read More
ZOOM+Care and Aetna are going to collaborate on an accountable care initiative in three Oregon counties, with the stated aim of cutting healthcare costs by up to 15% for employers in the Portland area. Offerings under the Aetna Whole Health ─ ZOOM+Care plan will be available starting July 1, though Aetna sales reps are quoting plans to local insurance producers as we speak. The partners plan to enable patients to use mobile phones to schedule …
Read More
It may come as no surprise to healthcare industry veterans, but there are fresh data that shed new light on greater utilization of emergency rooms by pediatric patients in neighborhoods viewed as disadvantaged. Statistically, kids who live in “low opportunity” areas are roughly 33% more likely to visit an urgent care center or the ED than children who grow up elsewhere. It’s not just scratchy throats and sudden fevers sending them there, either; the less-advantaged …
Read More
Walmart may be looking to wade deeper into the healthcare pool—including, potentially, offering urgent care services—by working more closely with Humana, according to an article published in The New York Times. The report says unnamed sources don’t expect Walmart to take over Humana outright. More likely, the deal will manifest in a financial and operating partnership focused on prescription drug sales and/or insurance coverage. It could also be the basis for opening urgent care centers …
Read More