Practice Management
Urgent care operators considering adding a concierge medicine component to their business may find rationale to do so—or not to do so—in a new position paper published in the November 10 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The paper declines to give either a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down to direct patient contracting practices (DPCPs)—aka “concierge medicine”—but does offer perspective on the pros and cons relative to medical quality, cost, access, and other factors. On the …
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Investing in the growth of the retail health segment continues to be a hit-or-miss proposition for major chains around the country. While Walmart is hoping it won’t strike out with its third iteration of a clinic offering, Safeway is pulling the plug on plans to offer “upscale” clinical services—the keystone of which would have been a vendor’s blood analyzer—in 800 stores. Safeway spent around $350 million to build the clinics, hoping the blood tests produced …
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Findings of a new study seem to support the notion that “defensive medicine”—eg, ordering tests even when not specifically indicated clinically—may offer some degree of protection to urgent care centers and other medical facilities. The study, authored by a team from Harvard Medical School led by Anupam B. Jena, MD, PhD, found an inverse association between spending and probability of a malpractice claim. In other words, employing greater resources reduced the risk of a malpractice …
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Undocumented immigrants who stopped showing up at urgent care centers after receiving health insurance under the Affordable Care Act may be back the next time they’re injured on the job or a child spikes a fever. Roughly 423,000 of those newly insured lost their coverage due to a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) policy requiring proper documentation of immigration status or income within 95 days of getting coverage. Urgent care has been a …
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Humana’s plan to lower the number of elderly patients who seek care in the emergency room could end up costing urgent care centers. The company is testing a telehealth program that encourages Medicare Advantage enrollees to try “virtual” visits for relatively minor complaints before they head to the hospital. On-call clinicians would have access to the patient’s medical history and the authority to direct the patient’s care (which could still entail a trip to the …
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New state-specific data show a mix of obstacles to efficient, cost-effective care in the emergency room. One study shows that some EDs are diverting more patients than ever before due to overcrowding, while another finds hundreds of millions of dollars of waste in the emergency setting. Is it any wonder patients are turning to their local urgent care centers in droves? The Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems reports that from 2013 to 2014, …
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URGENT MESSAGE: Effective October 1, 2015, businesses that accept credit and debit cards can be responsible for fraud charges if they do not implement technology that reads the microchip-enabled cards now being issued by banks. Urgent care operators should work with their credit card processors to assure compliance through use of upgraded equipment that is compatible with their practice management systems. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent …
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The arrest of a physician assistant on federal drug charges is a reminder that urgent care operators need to be vigilant for illegal prescribing practices or face the consequences. The PA, himself the operator of a pair of urgent care centers in Riverhead, NY, has been charged with conspiring to distribute oxycodone illegally. The US Justice Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, and local, county, and state law enforcement allege the PA issued prescriptions for thousands of …
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Luke Hart will share a “holistic perspective” on thriving in the urgent care marketplace during a live webinar hosted by the Urgent Care Association (UCA) Thursday, November 19 at 1 pm, Central. In Getting Out of Your Own Way—Learn to Manage and Lead Effectively, the former urgent care CEO will focus on implementable tools to help participants define and reshape operational structures, optimize staff communications, and devise a positive work environment. The cost is $50 …
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Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) is doubling down on its stake in the Las Vegas healthcare market by buying 14 urgent care centers owned there by Urgent Care Extra. The deal includes six more urgent care centers currently under development in Nevada. HCA already has four hospitals and four surgery centers in the area by virtue of owning Sunrise Health Systems. Based in Nashville, TN, HCA now operates 65 urgent care centers in 20 states, …
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