Partners HealthCare, a Boston-based integrated care system, announced plans to launch a number of urgent care clinics in eastern Massachusetts through a joint venture agreement with MedSpring Urgent Care. The project is called "Partners Urgent Care."
Patients with non-life threatening medical conditions will be able to schedule same-day appointments or walk in to receive care. Physicians will be onsite at the clinics from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., including weekends and holidays, providing treatment for routine illness and injury, lab tests, X-rays and physicals.
Urgent care centers provide patients with a cost-effective alternative to emergency room care. Visits are usually less than one hour and copays are similar to typical physician's appointments, according to a statement. Patients with high deductibles seeking emergency care may benefit most — savings can total more than $800 by seeking care at an urgent care clinic rather than the emergency room. However, conditions putting a patient's life, limbs or vision at risk should be treated at the emergency room.
MedSpring Urgent Care owns and operates urgent care and immediate care centers in Houston, Dallas, Austin, Texas and Chicago. The Massachusetts project is expected to begin in early 2015.
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