Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Hospitals, Insurance Companies Acquire Urgent Care Clinics As Their Popularity Grows
More Americans are turning to urgent care clinics, and patients are finding the dual benefit of the ones that are attached to a hospital: convenience but with a safety net if their problem proves more serious than they thought.
When it comes to health issues that need immediate attention but aren鈥檛 life-threatening, more Americans are turning to urgent-care centers鈥攁nd traditional health-care providers are getting into the game. Over the past two years, hospital chains and insurance companies have snapped up urgent-care centers in a spate of mergers and acquisitions. Health systems, too, are moving into this space, striking joint ventures with independent urgent-care operators, says Tom Charland, chief executive of consulting firm Merchant Medicine. (Landro, 3/20)
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