Practice Management
A study of 1,061 hospitals recently published in JAMA Network Open offers a classification of 4 levels of pediatric clinical capability, based on the parameters of the services provided by the hospitals. The hope is that outcomes and care delivery can be compared in a way that is more of an “apples-to-apples” approach using the 4 pediatric hospital capability levels developed by the authors. For urgent care centers, such classifications could be handy for triaging …
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UnitedHealth Group—the parent company of Change Healthcare, which is still reeling from a massive data breach in February—raised its forecast regarding the financial impact of the cyberattack to as much as $2.45 billion on the year. That’s more than double its previous estimate. Meanwhile, UnitedHealth reported Q2 profits of $4.2 billion and revenue increases of nearly 7%, according to Healthcare Dive. After input from federal officials a few weeks ago, the company was put on-task …
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Urgent Care for Kids in Houston, Texas, this week announced the acquisition of 11 Pediatrix Medical Group Primary + Urgent Care clinics, formerly operating under the NightLight Pediatrics Urgent Care brand. Since its establishment in 2011, Urgent Care for Kids has offered traditional urgent care as well as telehealth services, and with the acquisition, brings its total number of clinic locations to 23. Portfolio peek: Urgent Care for Kids is a subsidiary of Goodside Health, …
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The percentage of physicians experiencing at least 1 symptom of burnout has fallen below 50% for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, according to the American Medical Association (AMA). The AMA’s 2023 annual survey, which included more than 12,400 physicians from 31 states, revealed a slow decline in burnout from a peak of 62.8% in 2021. Reported burnout levels fell to 53% in 2022 and further decreased to 48.2% in the most recent …
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According to several news outlets, Walmart has been in the boardroom with Humana to discuss a potential sale of the Walmart Health clinics that have closed up shop in recent weeks after Walmart decided to get out of the business. Most likely, Humana—a large managed care organization with 674,000 covered lives—won’t be the only possible suitor for the clinics. Humana already operates CenterWell Senior Primary Care with 250 clinics in 40 states, so it has …
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Drugmakers are developing new iterations of GLP-1 weight loss drugs that could result in fewer side effects. According to a news item in Becker’s Hospital Review, 27 GLP-1 drugs are in development, but the majority of the data is based on animal studies or early-stage human trials. In one example, researchers are optimistic about the experimental drug petrelinitide, which was shown to reduce body weight by an average of nearly 9% at 16 weeks. It …
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More than 80% of consumers live or work within 15 minutes of an urgent care (UC) center, according to a national survey from healthcare communications firm Jarrard. Not at all surprising, nearly 40% of the survey respondents said the convenience of walking in was the top reason why they chose to go to UC instead of primary care for their most recent UC visit, followed by the convenience of getting an appointment in the expected …
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CityMD, which operates more than 175 urgent care centers in New York and New Jersey, has agreed to pay $12 million to settle allegations of violating the False Claims Act. The allegations state that for 2 years, CityMD knowingly submitted false claims to a federal health program for uninsured patients for COVID-19 testing. The Justice Department says CityMD failed to adequately verify patients’ insurance status, submitting claims for those who already had insurance. Additionally, CityMD …
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MedWise Urgent Care and the family services agency in Tulsa, Oklahoma, are partnering to provide easier access to mental healthcare services. Patients who walk into a MedWise clinic can connect with a specialist for behavioral health needs. A local crisis call center that provides support to more than 14,000 people a year will extended its services to 12 MedWise Urgent Care centers in the Tulsa area and northeast Oklahoma. In real-time, patients can collaborate with …
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Goldman Sachs Alternatives recently announced its acquisition of Xpress Wellness, LLC. Xpress Wellness is affiliated with a physician-led rural healthcare platform that includes urgent care clinics serving Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas. The deal is positioned to accelerate the development of new and existing markets as well as to build out additional healthcare services, according to a press release. Recent moves: Within the portfolio of Latticework Capital Management since 2018, Xpress Wellness opened 30 de novos …
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