Today, many people are looking for a more affordable alternative to the traditional emergency department visit. If you do not require the immediate attention of the emergency department, and your primary care physician’s office is closed, then you may want to consider the closest urgent care center. Urgent care costs are much lower than an emergency department, and they can treat a wide range of illnesses and injuries. So the next time you find yourself in need of some medical assistance, consider going to your local urgent care facility for immediate care.
It was during the 1970s that the urgent care movement began in the United States, but since then the movement has grown exponentially around the globe. And it’s no surprise. Urgent care facilities offer many of the benefits of traditional physician’s offices and emergency departments at a much reduced cost and wait time. Urgent care costs are one reason in particular that drives many people to seek immediate medical care there instead of the traditional routes. While the costly bills for an emergency department visit can cause medical problems themselves, urgent care costs can be up to one tenth the cost. Depending on their insurance provider, many people can expect to pay only $100 for a visit to an urgent care center. And urgent care cost is not the only advantage. Wait times are also significantly reduced at an urgent care center. Whereas you can expect to wait hours in an emergency room, the average wait time at an urgent care center is about 30 minutes.
And it’s not just urgent care costs and wait times that are driving people away from their primary care physicians and emergency departments. Primary care physicians are receiving increasing caseloads, leading to difficulty scheduling appointments, longer wait times, and decreased time spent with each patient. So it shouldn’t be surprising that a study conducted by the CDC showed that 48 percent of adult ER patients that were not sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, only ended up at the ER because their physicians’ offices were closed.
Some may be worried that since urgent care costs are so low, services provided may be limited. Urgent care centers can treat a wide range of injuries and illnesses such as breaks, sprains, flu symptoms, and gastrointestinal issues, and they must also have on-site diagnostic services, including phlebotomy and x-ray. Considering that the average child catches between six and ten colds every year, and between five and twenty percent of adults come down with the flu every year, you might as well save on health care costs and head to your local urgent care center. Find out more here: doctorsexpresswa.com
I pretty much use my local urgent care to the exclusion of the emergency department. And if I’m not going for an annual physical, I’ll even go to the exclusion of my own doctor.
Emergency department bills are ridiculous! I sit there, injured, for hours, they hand me some Aspirin and charge me hundreds of dollars for privilege. Outrageous.
Emergency department bills are ridiculous! I sit there, injured, for hours, they hand me some Aspirin and charge me hundreds of dollars for privilege. Outrageous.
Emergency department bills are ridiculous! I sit there, injured, for hours, they hand me some Aspirin and charge me hundreds of dollars for privilege. Outrageous.
Emergency department bills are ridiculous! I sit there, injured, for hours, they hand me some Aspirin and charge me hundreds of dollars for privilege. Outrageous.
Emergency department bills are ridiculous! I sit there, injured, for hours, they hand me some Aspirin and charge me hundreds of dollars for privilege. Outrageous.